


There Are Worse Things I Could Do

by allweseeislight



Series: Hosie THG Au [1]
Category: Hunger Games Series - All Media Types, Legacies (TV 2018)
Genre: F/F, F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-28
Updated: 2021-02-21
Packaged: 2021-03-08 03:28:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 21
Words: 72,719
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26699035
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/allweseeislight/pseuds/allweseeislight
Summary: During the 74th annual Hunger Games, 15 year old Josie volunteers for her sister. Hoping to stay alive and avoid the stronger tributes, she gets a surprise when she crosses paths with 17 year old career tribute Hope Mikaelson from District 2, who wants nothing but to win for her district.
Relationships: Hope Mikaelson/Josie Saltzman, Landon Kirby/Josie Saltzman
Series: Hosie THG Au [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1942921
Comments: 350
Kudos: 726





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I do not own Legacies, the Hunger Games, or any of the characters

Josie was woken up by her sister kicking her in the back. She rolled over and was about to yell at her when she saw that Lizzie’s eyes were closed. She was dreaming, and from the looks of her, it definitely wasn’t a good one. Josie pulled herself up and gently shook her,

“Lizzie. Hey Lizzie. Lizzie!” she hissed, trying to keep her voice quiet. If she woke her Mother, she’d never hear the end of it. Though maybe she wouldn’t mind. Today of all days. She gave her sister one last push, and Lizzie’s eyes sprung open.

“It’s okay,” Josie told her twin, wrapping her in her arms, “You’re okay.”

“It was awful,” Lizzie murmured, “They picked me. And then I was in the arena. There was this big...person on top of me and they-”

“Shh,” Josie soothed, “Don’t think like that. Your name is only in there four times, you’ll be fine.” It was the same with Lizzie every year. Josie had reacted similarly for their first reaping three years ago, but now she’d grown almost numb to the fear. If she was picked, she was picked. Nothing she could do about it. Rafael said that was a good mentality, especially since her name was in the bowl a whopping sixteen times. But, it put food on the table, so it was worth it. But speaking of food, she needed to get out there. She couldn’t have her Mom and Lizzie going hungry, and the sun would be up soon.

“I’ll be back in a bit. Get some more sleep, alright? I won’t be gone long,” Josie assured her. She helped Lizzie back under the covers before getting out of bed. She walked towards the bathroom, braiding her hair as she did so. She brushed her teeth and washed her face, then went to her dresser to get her hunting outfit. She pulled on her pants and shirt, then went to the kitchen for her jacket. On the way, she poked her head into the living room, where her Mother was still asleep in the rocking chair. Josie shook her head. Her Mom barely moved from that chair nowadays. 

“I’m going out, Mom,” she said in an attempt to be normal. She didn’t hear her, but that was to be expected. Josie shook her head and went to the kitchen for her jacket. She slid it on before heading outside. She walked to the tree at the side of the house and knocked the fake bark out. She pulled her bow and arrows out of their hiding spot, and started her trek. She slid under the fence, making sure to mind the barb wire, and went towards the woods. Once she was enveloped by the trees, she kept her senses alert. She’d need to catch something good to trade in the Hob. The food from the tesserae was a lot less than she’d hoped, and she wanted to get something nice for her sister, who was probably still incredibly nervous. Josie would have felt bad for leaving if what she was doing wasn’t so important. She was ripped from her thoughts when she heard a twig crack. Josie turned to the direction of the sound, and saw a deer nibbling at a patch of grass.  _ Perfect _ . Josie readied her bow, and got the deer in sight. She was about to make her shot when a loud crash came from behind her. The deer, startled by the noise, quickly ran away.

“Dammit Raf!” Josie exclaimed, turning to her friend.

“Hey I’m saving your ass,” he said, “How did you plan on explaining that to the people in the Seam? You’d get reported, and I’d be down a friend.” 

“Yeah well thanks to you, I lost any chance of food for the rest of the day.” Rafael picked up a stone from the ground, gave Josie a knowing nod, and tossed it forward. It startled two pigeons, who immediately began to flow away. Josie quickly used her bow, and shot one of them to the ground.

“Not bad, huh?” Rafael asked.

“Not bad at all,” Josie said. She was going to get the bird when the wind picked up. A Capitol hovercraft was coming. Rafael grabbed her and hid the two of them behind a tree as it passed. When it was gone, they came out of hiding and he said,

“That’s never going to get old.”

“You’ve got that right,” Josie said. She grabbed the bird and said, “Come on, we should get out of here. In case it comes back.” She walked with Rafael towards the hills, and they sat down. While Josie cleaned up the bird to get it ready to sell, Rafael pulled something out of his pocket.

“Here,” he said. “For luck.” Josie turned to see what he had, and her mouth almost started watering at the plump bread roll in his hands.

“Holy shit,” she said, “Is that real?”

“As real as you and me,” he said. Josie took the bread and ripped it into halves, giving one to Rafael. She took a bite and said,

“Now this is heaven.”

“Oh yeah?” She nodded,

“If I could live every day like this, it’d be a good life.”

“Then why not try?” Rafael asked. Josie laughed, thinking he was joking, but when she saw the look on his face, she realized he wasn’t.

“Raf, we can’t just leave. Who will take care of my sister, or your brother?”

“Landon gets by,” Rafael said, “And he’s made it clear the past few years that he doesn’t need me as much as I thought.”

“C’mon, you know that’s not true.” Though Josie wasn’t so sure. Landon and Rafael were only half brothers, who’d grown up with their father, a sad drunk. But Landon had left Rafael to live with his Mother, who owned the local bakery, and Rafael was left to deal with their Father. While Josie was close with Rafael, she didn’t mind Landon. He always smiled at her, and Josie used to watch him frost the cakes through the bakery window when she walked home from school. But she knew Landon was a sore spot for Rafael, so she decided to take the conversation away from him.

“And besides,” she continued, “Even if we left, where would we go? The Peacekeepers would find us, and we’d probably be executed.”

“But what if they didn’t,” Rafael said, “Wouldn’t it be worth it if they didn’t?”  _ Maybe, _ Josie thought, but she couldn’t say that out loud.

“We can’t,” she said, “We just can’t.” They finished their bread, and that was when Josie realized she had to get going. If she didn’t go to the Hob now, she wouldn’t get the money before she needed to get ready for the Reaping. Josie and Rafael were silent as they crossed the fence, until Josie asked,

“How many times is your name in there?” 

“Forty two,” he answered simply, “You?”

“Sixteen,” Josie said, “Do you ever think-”

“I try not to,” he said. Josie just nodded slowly. They made it to the Hob, which is where Rafael said he needed to get home.

“I need to check on Dad,” he said, “But I’ll see you there.” Josie nodded, then watched him leave. He was a lot more down than he usually was on this day. It made her wonder.  _ Does he think he’s going to be picked this year? _

“Move it lady!” a cranky old man standing behind her snapped.

“Sorry,” she said. She walked inside, and went to the usual table. She was handing the bird over to Ms. Gilbert when she noticed the gold pin on her table.

“Do you like it?” she asked, catching Josie off guard.

“Oh! I mean, it’s pretty, but uh, I’ll just take my three pieces, please.” Ms. Gilbert handed her the three pieces of coin, then said,

“Take it. For luck.” 

“Really?” Josie asked. The woman nodded, and Josie pocketed the coin before picking the pin up, “The bird looks familiar. What is it?”

“Mockingjay,” she said, “Do they teach you about those in school?”  _ Yeah, but barely _ , Josie thought. Mockingjays were a symbol of the rebellion. The rebellion that had caused all of this trouble to begin with. Josie gave her a small nod and said,

“Yes, they taught us.”

“Good luck today, Josette,” she said, “I’ll be praying for you.”

“Thanks,” Josie said, a little taken aback by the use of her given name, “I guess I’ll see you la-”

“Elena!” one of the workers yelled, cutting Josie off, “We need you over here.” Elena gave Josie a small wave before heading over to the other woman. Josie sighed before slipping the pin in her inside pocket. She left the Hob and went home. She only had a bit of time to get ready. They all had to be there by 10, and it was nearing 9:30. She quickened her pace and got to her house. She put her bow and arrows in their usual spot before heading inside, where her Mother was pacing.

“Where the hell have you been?” she asked crossly.

“Out,” Josie said simply, “I told you, by the way.”

“Don’t be smart with me,” she said, “I have your outfit laid out. Hop into the bath first, you have dirt all over you.” She didn’t say much more than that. Josie shrugged her jacket off, placing it on the usual hook in the kitchen. She placed the coin in the usual dish, and put the pin next to it. She’d come back to it after the Reaping. She walked into her room and saw Lizzie sitting on the bed, brushing her long blonde hair over her shoulders.

“You look beautiful,” Josie commented. Her sister didn’t respond. Josie could see her hands shaking as she moved the brush. She was terrified. Josie let her be and went into the bathroom. She stripped her clothes off and sat in the tub, which was now filled with lukewarm water. She scrubbed her body as fast as she could before hopping out and drying off. She left the bathroom and put on the blue dress her Mom had laid out for her, then allowed the older woman to put her hair in two french braids.

“All done,” Caroline said, “We’d better get going, we don’t want to be late.” She ushered the two girls outside, and Josie held Lizzie’s hand the entire way there. They got to the check in line, and Josie saw Rafael with the other eighteen year olds. He gave her a small nod upon seeing her, before going for his finger prick.

“Next in line!” the peacekeeper called, and Josie realized he was talking to her. She moved forward and presented her finger. He pricked it, and she pushed it onto the paper so he could scan it. 

“Next,” he said, gesturing for her to go. Lizzie checked in, and Josie waited for her before going to stand with the other fifteen year olds. Everyone was on edge. The younger kids were holding hands and praying, while the older ones looked bored. Once everyone had filed in, the small conversations that had been going on ceased, and everyone watched as Katherine Pierce walked onto the stage. She always reminded Josie of what Ms. Gilbert would look like if she lived in the Capitol.

“Welcome welcome,” she said into the mic, “Happy Hunger Games!” she clapped after the statement, but no one joined in.

“Before we start, I have a special video presentation from the Capitol.” Josie refrained from rolling her eyes. They’d been playing this same video for the past seventy four years. Josie busied herself by playing with the end of her braid while the video went over the rebellion, how the districts lost, and how the Hunger Games had been established as a punishment.  _ Just get to the part everyone is waiting for! _ The video ended, and Katherine said,

“What a wonderful video that was.” No one shared her thoughts, “Now, to the moment you have all been waiting for, it is time to choose one brave man and one brave woman to represent District 12 in this year's Hunger Games!”  _ Man? Woman? _ Some of the kids here had just started middle school!

“And as always,” she said as she walked over to the bowl, “Ladies first.” Josie tensed, thinking of those sixteen slips with her name on them. She felt her breath hitch in her throat as Katherine pulled out the white slip, and opened it up. She walked to the mic, and said the name,

“Elizabeth Saltzman.” The world went cold. Josie could feel nothing except her sister stiffen from next to her.  _ No. This couldn’t be happening. _ Except that it was.

“Elizabeth,” Katherine repeated, “Come on up, darling.” Lizzie slowly moved from her spot and went to follow the Peacekeepers to the stage. Josie could hear the whispers of the other girls.  _ Thank God it wasn’t me. That poor girl. Lizzie Saltzman? She won’t even make it past the bloodbath _ . Josie could see it now. Her sister’s cold, dead eyes staring at her from the screen. She couldn’t let this happen. She wouldn’t. She ran towards her sister and said,

“Wait!” A Peacekeeper went to hold her back, and they kept fighting her until she said the words, “I volunteer!” Everything stopped, and Josie was soon the center of attention. The Peacekeeper let her go, and Josie walked forward, “I volunteer as tribute.” Josie watched her sister freeze, a pained expression crossing her face. She looked like she wanted to fight it, so Rafael moved from his spot and gently pulled her away as the Peacekeepers walked Josie forward.

“No! Josie!” Lizzie screamed for her. Josie tried to tune it out, but she couldn’t. Nor could she stop the tears falling from her face. She got to the stairs, and looked up at Katherine’s smiling face. It had to be fake. No one could smile that big during this.

“Let's welcome our first ever volunteer from District 12!” Katherine announced with glee as Josie stepped on the stage, “What’s your name, darling?”

“Josette Saltzman,” she said into the mic. Her scared voice echoed throughout the plaza.

“Well Josette, I bet my stars that was your sister, wasn’t it?”

“It was,” she said. Katherine gave her a rub on her shoulder and said,

“Congratulations to this year’s female tribute, Josette Saltzman!” Katherine announced happily, clapping her hands. But no one clapped. Instead, they kissed their three fingers and lifted them up. Josie knew that salute all too well. Katherine cleared her throat and said,

“Now to the boys.” Josie had been in so much shock that she’d nearly forgotten another tribute had to come up with her. She looked out into the crowd, and her eyes caught Rafael’s, who was still holding her distraught sister. Would it be his name that was picked? She hoped not. Katherine placed her hand in the bowl, and picked out the paper. She opened it, smiled, went to the mic and said,

“Landon Kirby.” Josie’s mouth almost dropped. There was no way! She could see Rafael’s half brother in the crowd. A look of fear had just crossed his face. Josie watched as he slowly left his place and walked forward with the Peacekeepers. He made quick eye contact with Josie before switching his attention back to the crowd. Josie looked at Rafael, who looked like he’d been stabbed. Maybe he had been. In a way.

“Well don’t just stand there you two,” Katherine said, “Shake hands.” Josie and Landon turned to face each other, and she shook his cold, clammy hand. She could feel it shake before she even moved hers. They shook hands, and then pulled away.

“Congratulations to the tributes of the 74th annual Hunger Games, Josette Saltzman and Landon Kirby!” Katherine said with a clap. Nothing else followed. She turned to Josie and Landon and said,

“Happy Hunger Games. And may the odds be ever in your favor.”


	2. Chapter 2

Josie swung her feet in front of her. The plush chair she was sitting in was so high up, she didn’t even know furniture like this existed. She could sell this for all the coin in the Hob. She’d been sitting here for what felt like hours, but she knew it couldn’t have been that long. She could still see people leaving the plaza through the window. They probably couldn’t see her, though. She didn’t think they cared much. They were all just relieved they hadn’t been picked. Josie usually was every year. Every year after the Reaping, every family would participate in a big party, well, every family except the two that had just sent their children to their deaths. The houses would shut the blinds, keep the lights off, and usually wouldn’t be heard of until they knew their child’s fate. Tonight that would be her house. Her Mom and Lizzie alone, with no one to protect them.

She heard the door open, and watched as a Peacekeeper ushered Mom and Lizzie in. Lizzie immediately ran to Josie and wrapped her in a hug. When they pulled apart, Josie received an unwelcome surprise when Lizzie smacked her in the face.

“Elizabeth!” Mom exclaimed.

“How could you do that?” her sister asked, “I never asked you to-”

“You didn’t have to,” Josie said, “I need to keep you safe. And you will be. Take care of your goat, and sell her milk to Ms. Gilbert for coin. That and the food from the tesserae will be enough to keep you and Mom on your feet-”

“Until you get back,” Lizzie said.  _ Oh dear. _ Josie sighed and said,

“It’ll keep you on your feet, okay?”

“Josie,” she said, “You have to win.” 

“I mean, I’ll try,” Josie said, after a moment of silence. She refused to look at her Mother. She didn’t even want to know what look she was giving her.

“You can hunt,” Lizzie said, “That will keep you alive, right?”

“Yeah,” Josie said, “I’ll try to win, I promise.” Lizzie nodded, and Josie gave her a hug, allowing herself to fully take in Lizzie’s comfort. She was probably never going to feel it again. They pulled apart, and Josie said,

“Let me talk to Mom, alright?” Lizzie nodded, and went to sit on the couch to collect herself. Josie took Caroline to the side and said,

“Mom, you need to promise that you’ll be there for her. This can’t be like when we were twelve and you shut yourself off, you need to be there!”

“I know,” she said, “I promise I will.” That was when Josie saw the fear clouding in her Mom’s eyes. That fear that made her know her Mom intended to keep her word.

“Thank you,” Josie said. Her Mom gave her a sad smile before pulling something out from her dress pocket. Josie realized it as the pin from Elena.

“Each tribute is allowed a token. A gift from their district,” Mom said, “You wear this with pride.” Josie nodded and said,

“I love you, Mom.” She wrapped her in a hug and held her tight. Her Mom gave her a kiss on the temple and said,

“Come back to us, baby.” The two of them pulled apart, and soon her Mom and Lizzie were gone. That had gone way too fast for her liking. Josie thought that she would be taken to the train soon, but she got another visitor.

“Raf,” she said, moving to hug her friend, “How are you, how’s Landon…”

“We don’t have much time,” Rafael said, “You’ve got this, alright? You’re going to make it out of this.” Josie shook her head,

“There’s twenty four of us Raf, only one gets out.”

“Yeah, and it’s going to be you.”

“How can you say that?” Josie asked, thinking about Landon. Then again, how could he not? Landon was a small boy who worked in a bakery. What chance did he have?

“When you get in there, you find a bow. If you can’t find one, make one,” Rafael said, “You know how to live off the land, and you know how to hunt-”

“Animals, Raf,” she said.

“There’s no difference,” Rafael said. He cupped her face in his hands and said, “You’re going to be the one who makes it out of here. I know it.” Josie gave him a soft smile and said,

“I saw you in the crowd, you know. You were going to volunteer for Landon.” Rafael’s face fell. He put his hands down and looked away, almost embarrassed, “Hey, I’m glad you didn’t. Your Dad is gonna need you, and so will Lizzie.”

“He’s my brother, Jo,” he said, “I just…”

“If I see him, I’ll try to keep him safe,” Josie said, “I promise.” Rafael looked like he was going to tell her not to do that, but then his face softened.

“Thank you,” he said. Josie nodded, and held his hand.

“It’s crazy how much changes in a day, huh?” Josie asked, tracing the lines over it. Just a few hours ago, they’d been sitting on that hill eating bread, talking about a future Josie wasn’t going to get.

“Yeah I know,” Rafael said. They stood like that a little longer until the Peacekeeper came in.

“Time’s up,” he barked. He grabbed Rafael and pulled him away from Josie.

“Raf, promise me you’ll keep them safe!” Josie shouted after him.

“I promise,” her friend said, and that was the last she heard from him. Probably the last she would ever hear from him.

Josie was marched to the train that would take her and Landon to the Capitol. She could hear the boy making small talk with Katherine, but she decided she wasn’t ready to join them yet. The cart she was in had a few couches, a nice coffee table, and a TV. It was one of several cars in the train, and it was bigger than her entire living room. There was no way that was fair. Josie looked at the TV, and realized it was playing video from the Reapings of all 12 Districts. It had just started, since it was on 1. Josie realized this was the first time she was seeing her competitors. Any one of them could potentially be the person that ended her life in the arena. How dark was that?

“Maya Machado,” the announcer for District 1 said. Maya didn’t look scared. She walked to the stage with her head held high, and even shook hands with the announcer.

“Jed Harker!” they announced next. If Maya had looked unafraid, then Jed was that times ten. He strutted to the stage, even high fiving some of his friends. It made Josie nervous. The TV switched to District 2. Something Josie noticed about this and the first one was that everyone dressed a lot better than they had in District 12. Perks of being from a rich district, she guessed. Since they surrounded the Capitol, they always got first pick at all the best resources in Panem. Josie watched the announcer go to the stage and announce,

“Wendy Stevens!” The camera went to Wendy, who actually looked scared as her name was called. As she walked to the podium with staggered steps and a petrified look on her face, she stopped when a voice cut through the square.

“I volunteer!” The camera panned to the girl who said that, and she ended up looking nothing like Josie had expected. Her voice had been big and broad, but the girl herself was small, and she looked like she was barely five feet. She had a sort of regalness to her when she walked, though, and she kept her head up high while everybody cheered for her. It was insane how much they were cheering, and how much she was eating it up. She made it to the stage, where she was asked her name. She made a face that was like “you know who I am,” but Josie didn’t know, so she was glad she still said it.

“I’m Hope Mikaelson,” she said, and was met with a wave of applause. An excited look crossed over the announcer’s face, and she said,

“Well, have we got a treat today. It seems the daughter of Klaus Mikaelson himself will be representing District 2 this year! Let’s give her another hand, everybody!” The cheering started again, and Hope was soaking all of it in. The camera panned away from her, to a man in the crowd. He was a lot younger than most of the parents. His arm was wrapped around a woman, who also looked pretty young, and while the faces of most Career tribute’s parents held pride, the man and woman looked empty and scared. The way any tribute from another district looked when their name was called. Those two had to be Hope’s parents. She looked just like both of them.  _ Klaus Mikaelson _ , that name sounded familiar. She’d definitely heard it before, she just didn’t know from where. The announcer went to announce the boy, and as she was halfway through saying “Diego,” a blonde boy shot forward in the crowd,

“I volunteer!” he announced. He hadn’t even waited. The sight of two people who looked excited to be in the Hunger Games was definitely enough to make Josie really nervous. The boy went to the stage and announced himself as Roman Sienna, then he shook hands with Hope. It was weird of Josie to be thinking this about one of her potential murderers, but Hope was really beautiful. She would probably get a lot of fans from that alone. And Roman wasn’t that bad looking as well. Josie remembered Rafael would talk about how the District 1 and 2 tributes always got the most support for being extremely hot.

“Seriously,” he’d said, “Look at them, they’re gorgeous.” In Hope’s case, Josie had no choice but to agree with him. Josie kind of lost interest after 1 and 2. 3 went by fast, and 4 went a little slower with Alyssa Chang and Sebastian Prince. Alyssa went up with no argument, but Sebastian basically had to be herded up by the Peacekeepers. That was not a good look. The list of tributes went on. Penelope from 5, Brock from 8, it kept going and going. Josie didn’t even realize it got to 11. That meant she was coming up soon, so she tuned back in. From 11, the girl, Kym Hawkins, was called, and Josie paled when the next name was Kaleb Hawkins. They couldn’t possibly be two siblings, right? But the fact that the same group of parents cried both times answered Josie’s question. However, as Kaleb was walking towards the stage, a scrawnier looking boy came forward.

“I volunteer!” he said, in an attempt to sound bold, but his voice squeaked as he did so.  _ Oh no. _ Kaleb turned, taken aback, and Josie watched as he went to stop the other boy, but it was too late. The Peacekeepers took the volunteer to the stage, leaving Kaleb looking broken. Josie felt something on her face, and as she looked at the big mirror on the train wall, she realized big tears were rolling down her face. She hadn’t even realized she’d been crying.

“What is your name, dear?” the announcer was asking the boy.

“Milton Greasley,” he said into the mic. Kym looked absolutely horrified. 

“Let’s give a warm congratulations to Kym Hawkins and Milton Greasley,” the announcer said. Ther reception for them was almost the same, if not sadder, as it was for her and Landon. The salute happened quietly, and Josie could see the tears on Kym’s face, while Milton was doing his best to remain proud, even though Josie could see the beginnings of tears as they zoomed in on his face. District 11 ended soon after that, and they were on to 12. Josie watched as Lizzie was called, and how she made it halfway to the stage before Josie jumped in. Her screams on the TV echoed through the small train car. She wondered what the other tributes were thinking of her right now, if they were watching, that is. Did they think she was brave? Or just downright foolish? She watched herself on stage. She looked nowhere near as brave as Jed or Hope. Those guys were going to massacre her, she just knew it. After Landon was called, the broadcast ended, and all of their names were placed on the screen. This was really happening. She was a tribute...in the Hunger Games...a literal fight to the death. She could feel herself start to panic, and was about to have a full meltdown when there was a knock on the door.

“Josette,” came Katherine’s high pitched voice, “Come join us, dear.” Josie got up from the couch and walked through the car door into the next one, where Landon was digging into a plate of pancakes. The smell wafted into Josie’s nose, and nearly made her mouth water. She sat across from Landon and helped herself to some while Katherine said,

“I’m just going to get Stefan.” In a lower tone she added, “He’s probably in the bar car.” She left, and once he was sure they were alone, Landon asked,

“Where were you?”

“I was watching the Reapings. They showed them on TV,” Josie said. Landon nodded slowly, focusing his attention on the pancakes. 

“Both the ones from 2 volunteered,” Josie said as a way to make conversation, “They looked like they really wanted to be here.”

“That’s because they did,” someone said, cutting her off. Josie and Landon turned and saw Katherine come in with a man who reeked of alcohol and really needed a shave, “We call those guys the Career Tributes. They train in a special academy until they’re 18, then they pick the best two to volunteer themselves in the games.” He plopped himself in the chair next to Josie, and she winced as his pungent smell went through her nose. He looked at her and said,

“I’m Stefan, though I gather Ms. Pierce already told you that.” 

“Are you here to tell us how to win?” Landon asked.

“Well I wouldn’t be much of a mentor if I didn’t,” Stefan said, leaning back and placing his feet on the table. Katherine rolled her eyes and went to sit away from them. Stefan grabbed a biscuit from the table and started buttering it. Josie wasn’t sure what to do, so Landon started.

“How do you find shelter?” he asked.

“You get to high ground,” Stefan said, “Keep yourself distanced, watch your back. A never, ever start a fire.” A haunted look crossed his face when he said that. After a few seconds of silence he said, “But that’s not what’s important.” He turned to Josie,

“What can you do with a knife?”  _ Not much. _ He handed the sharp steak knife to her, and Josie studied the blade. Knives weren’t really her thing. She played around with it for a second, unsure of what to do. Stefan started to laugh at her, which pissed her off. She didn’t like knives, why’d he have to be such a jerk about it? His soft chuckles turned into big laughs, and soon Landon awkwardly joined in.  _ Asshole _ . Josie, getting fed up with them, angrily jammed the knife in the table between two of Stefan’s fingers, which shut the boys up, but not Katherine, who gaped and exclaimed,

“That is mahogany!” Josie just rolled her eyes. She snuck a look at Stefan, and saw the happenings of an almost smile on his face. Maybe he’d been impressed. Josie pulled the knife out of the table and placed it next to her plate. She was about to start eating her food when she began to hear the distinct sounds of...cheering.

“Is that the Capitol?” Landon asked.

“Yes it is,” Stefan said with a grim expression on his face. Landon got up to look out the window, and Katherine clapped her hands excitedly.

“Oh we’ve arrived!” she said in a cheerful voice that made Josie want to puke. The train entered the Capitol gates, where there were a ton of people waiting to see them. Landon started to wave from the window, eliciting a bunch of cheers from the “fans.” It was sickening.

“Josie come on,” Landon said, “They’ll love it!” Josie just shook her head. She had no desire to be the Capitol’s pet. Landon just shrugged before turning back to continue waving. Stefan gave Josie a look and said in a low tone,

“My advice to you is to keep that knife close. Because he knows what he’s doing.” Stefan left to get another drink, and Josie was left alone at the table, feeling an overwhelming amount of dread.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you guys are liking it so far!


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Content Warning: mentions of suicide

The first night at the Capitol was the Tribute parade. Josie used to watch it with her sister, and they’d comment on the outfits of the tributes. The ones from 1 and 2 were always her favorite, while 12 was always the worst. It was usually some variation of a coal miner outfit. She could never forget two years ago when they’d just paraded the tributes out in nothing but dark soot from the mines. That had been such a turnoff. Neither of them had gotten any sponsors, and one had died in the bloodbath while the other made it two days. Josie wondered which fate would be hers. 

She and Landon were split up to meet their respective stylists. His was a woman named Emma, while hers was a man named Dorian. Before she met him, she spent hours on a table while other beauticians worked on her, almost like she was a toy doll. She wouldn’t be surprised if that was how they saw her, given that it was the seventy fourth year of this. They plucked her eyebrows, cut her nails, rubbed creams all over her face, and spent the longest time waxing her face, arms, and legs. She could see the disgust in their eyes as they looked at the hair on the strips.  _ Sorry I don’t have money to get a monthly waxing _ , she thought crossly, but she decided to keep her mouth shut. When the painful waxing was finally done, they left, and Josie waited for Dorian. It felt weird being alone. Ever since the reaping, she felt like she’d been surrounded by people all day. The door opened a few minutes later, and Dorian walked in. Besides the golden eyeshadow, he didn’t look like all of the other Capitol people. There was something about him that was much more...real.

“Josette Saltzman?” he asked when he saw her.

“It’s Josie,” she murmured. She was Josette with Katherine and everyone else, but she felt like she could be Josie with him. 

“Alright Josie, nice to meet you,” he said, “I’m Dorian Williams.”

“Are you here to help me look pretty?” Josie asked.

“I’m here to help you make an impression,” he said, “I saw what you did on the TV. That was very brave of you to do that for your sister.” 

“Thank you,” Josie said.

“And I know you’re scared, you’ve got every right to be. But tonight is your first look in front of all the people in the Capitol. Let’s make it a good one, alright?” Josie nodded. She decided that she really liked Dorian. Dorian looked her over and took some measurements, and a few hours later, she was getting fit into a tight black body suit. She felt awkward, but according to Dorian and her makeup team, she looked “absolutely stunning, darling.” Dorian was pinning her hair back in braids when Josie was finally reunited with Landon. His stylist Emma was talking with him excitedly about an idea Dorian had for the cape he was wearing. Josie hadn’t gotten hers yet, but the way Emma was talking made her kind of nervous. Dorian finished with her hair, then clipped the cape firmly to the body suit.

“Alright, let me get a look at you both,” Dorian said. He studied the outfits to make sure everything fit right before going, “Okay, so when you get out there and your chariot makes it in front of the main crowd, both these capes are going to catch on fire.”  _ Excuse me!? _

“Wait, what?” Landon asked.

“Relax, it’s not real fire,” Dorian said, “But they won’t know that,” he added with a wink.  _ Oh this was going to be bad. _ Josie and landed were seated in their chariots, and she could see glimpses of the other tributes in front of them. District 11 were dressed as farmers, District 8 has a wide mix of textile fabrics, and 4 were holding actual tridents, but the group that really caught her eye was 2. Hope and Roman were dressed in golden gladiator outfits. Her hair was in waves down her back, and the golden crown on her head really framed her face. Josie hadn’t realized her jaw had dropped until Landon made a comment about it. She quickly closed her mouth and kept her eyes on the crowd. The chariots began to make their way into the crowd. 1 and 2 got the most applause, with 4 a close second. Josie noticed that 5 through 8 was when the real dip in attention started. No wonder Dorian wanted to light their capes on fire when they got in front of the crowd. The announcer, a man named Enzo St. John, was giving his own comments about the tributes, and while he’d also kind of gone into a bored lull, his attention sparked at the sight of Josie and Landon.

“Would you look at what we have here?” he asked the crowd, “It’s our tributes from District 12...and they’re on fire!” All the eyes that were on the Career tributes parked by the front had all turned to Josie and Landon. People took pictures, and they clapped loudly. Josie gave them a small smile and decided to wave. She hadn’t wanted to before, but she’d promised Lizzie she was going to win, and if pretending to like these people helped her chances, she had to try. As she waved, she felt Landon’s hand brush against her, so she quickly pulled it away. Then the boy murmured,

“C’mon, you know they’ll love it.”  _ Win for Lizzie, win for Lizzie, _ she thought to herself. She took Landon’s hand, and the two of them lifted their hands up to the crowd. The cheering that followed nearly burst Josie’s eardrums. They started throwing glitter and roses at the two of them, and Josie had caught one by the time they reached the other Chariots. The twenty four of them waited as President Vardemus stood up from his seat and went to a podium. He cleared his throat and said,

“Ladies and Gentleman, please welcome the tributes of the 74th annual Hunger Games.” There was almost no emotion to his voice when he said that, but he still received a ton of applause, “We applaud your bravery and skill, and wish you well in the days to come. In my experience, as a young boy who watched these games…” He kept going, but Josie had turned him out to focus on the crowd. She saw Stefan sitting a few rows behind Vardemus, with people who Josie realized were all the past victors. That was when she saw him. Klaus Mikaelson. He had a grin on his face as he made eye contact with his daughter. That was when Josie realized where she’d heard his name before. He’d won the Hunger Games before Josie had even been born in record time, with the most kills of any tribute-17. Would his daughter share his power in the arena? Josie didn’t want to find out. 

She noticed Klaus give Stefan a polite nod, but Josie’s mentor didn’t return it. In fact, he just scoffed and turned away. What was going on there? Josie didn’t get a chance to find out, because cheering started again as Vardemus finished his speech. Josie gave him some halfhearted claps as the Chariots were rolled out of the room. Josie and Landon were soon joined by Stefan and Katherine, who congratulated them for the hand holding.

“You guys definitely got a lot of buzz,” was all they got from Stefan, who was soon pulling a flask from his jacket pocket. Katherine rolled her eyes and transitioned her energy to fussing over Josie and Landon’s outfits, still worried that they’d gotten burned. While Josie had hated Katherine this morning, she was starting to realize that the older woman really did care for the tributes in her care for these five days. She wondered how the woman felt when she saw those tribute’s names flash on the screen after they’d died. She wondered how she would feel about Josie when she was killed. While Katherine and Landon made conversation about potential sponsors, Josie found her attention drift to the District 2 Chariot. Hope was removing the crown and running a hand through her long hair while Klaus seemed to be lecturing her about something. Josie couldn’t hear everything he was saying, but she got the gist that he’d wanted her to act more excited. She walked a little closer and heard him say,

“You’ll need sponsors, Hope. Your performance at the Reaping was done well, so you need to keep that momentum going the next few days. Every interaction counts.”

“I get it, Dad,” Hope said, “I’ll make you proud.” He smiled at her and said,

“I know you will. Let’s run strategies tonight, hmm? I know the best way to-” he was cut off when Hope turned to Josie and rudely remarked,

“Did you want something?” her voice echoed through the room, and nearly made Josie blush. All the tributes, including Landon, had their eyes on her.

“Um, no,” Josie mumbled, feeling very nervous under the gaze of this extremely scary girl and her even scarier father. Hope handed her crown to her father and walked up to Josie. She looked the whole girl over and whispered,

“You won’t last an hour. Focus on that instead of what’s going on with me.” She pulled away and stalked off, but Josie could still feel her breath on her throat. Katherine quickly ushered Josie and Landon away from the watching crowd, while Stefan just shook her head. Josie was still a little rattled with what happened, not because it had been scary, but because she had kinda liked it.

Stefan and Katherine took Josie and Landon into the giant building, called the “Tribute Tower,” where the two of them would be living the next two days before getting sent to the arena.

“Each set of tributes gets a floor,” she explained as the four of them entered the elevator, “Since you two are District 12, you get the penthouse!” The elevator went up to the top floor, and when it opened, Josie couldn’t believe her eyes. She stepped out and found herself looking at a lavish dining and sitting room, complete with granite countertops, shiny glasses, multiple TV, and the comfiest couches that she’d ever seen.

“Dinner will be prepared in an hour,” Katherine said, gesturing to the dining table, “That should give you two all the time you need to freshen up. Josette, your room is up there.” She pointed down a long hallway to the right, “And Landon, you’re over there.” She pointed to the left when she said that, “Go on, there are some clothes in there for you to change in to. We’ll be waiting out here once you’re finished.” Josie separated herself from the group and went down the hallway to her room at the end. She figured this was where the other seventy three girls who had competed had stayed. All of whom were dead now. Stefan was District 12’s only victor, which was why he was the only mentor. Josie wondered how many mentors Hope had besides her father. The winner was usually from District 1 or 2. Hope was probably feeling a lot less lonely than Josie did right now. 

Josie shook all thoughts of Hope from her mind and went to her room. It was a huge space, and it was a lot bigger than the room she and Lizzie shared at home. The walls were pretty bland though. Every other wall in the Capitol was adorned with art, or in some cases, gold. Josie noticed there was a remote on the bed. She picked it up, and pressed the on button, expecting a TV to appear from somewhere, but instead, it lit up the wall. That was when Josie realized the only buttons on the remote were a forwards and backwards arrow. She pressed the forwards one and almost yelped in delight as the image on the wall changed to one of a beach. District 12 didn’t have beaches, but she knew 4 did. She kept pressing the arrows, and ended up stopping at a picture of the woods. They looked exactly like the woods she and Raf had been in this morning. She wondered if he’d watched the parade. Had she thought she looked good? Had Lizzie? She guessed she’d never know. Looking at the woods ended up being too painful, so she just turned the power off. The bland wall was a lot better now.

Josie walked up to the dining room table for dinner an hour later, and she saw Stefan and Katherine eating some bread and butter, but Landon wasn’t there yet. Josie wanted to leave and wait a little longer, but Katherine saw her before she could.

“Josette, you look wonderful!” Katherine said, “Come and sit with us.” Wonderful wasn’t how Josie would have described what she’d changed into. After spending forty five minutes trying to figure out the Capitol’s weird shower, she’d quickly pulled on the first blouse and skirt she’d found while also trying to dry her hair. Compared to what Katherine always wore, she felt extremely underdressed.

“Thanks,” she still said, not wanting to be rude. She sat next to Stefan, where she was pleasantly surprised to see him with a water glass. He noticed her surprise since he said,

“Some nights I like to take it easy.” He winked, and Josie shook her head. His choices made her happy, though she could understand his want to drink. The games probably hadn’t been easy on him, and now he was stuck here every year mentoring people who would suffer the same fate as the twenty three people who had died in the arena. Besides him, District 12 had never had a victor, so everyone who he mentored came home in a box. She tried to distract herself from those thoughts by eating something. She hadn’t really eaten since that roll Rafael had given her, and she was starving. She grabbed a peace of bread, nearly gaping at how warm it was. The people in the Capitol really did live well. She noticed that Stefan and Katherine both had water, but there wasn’t any for her.

“Um, Katherine?” Josie asked.

“Yes sweetheart,” the woman said.

“Is there any more water?” Katherine nodded and said,

“Yes yes, of course.” She snapped her finger, and a woman in a red dress came with a glass of water. She placed it on the table, and Josie said,

“Thank you.” When the woman didn’t answer, Josie realized who she was. She was an Avox. Avoxes were people punished for breaking Panem rules, and when caught, they were taken by hovercrafts, never to be seen again. Josie and Rafael had seen that happen to a girl once in the woods, which was why they would do their best to remain cautious. Avoxes had their tongues cut out, so they wouldn’t be able to talk, and which was why this girl wasn’t talking to Josie now. Josie didn’t touch her water glass for the rest of dinner.

The rest of the meal had been a serve yourself deal, so Josie had felt a little better about eating it, though it did make her sick to think about her family at home, who had nothing. She attempted to not think about it by focusing her attention on Landon, who’d never shown up. She decided to go to his room to see if he was okay, only to find him asleep, his damp hair getting water rings all over the bed. Josie didn’t want to bother him, but she also wasn’t tired enough to go to sleep, so she asked Katherine if it was okay for her to walk around.

“You can go to the ground floor, but you’re not allowed out of the building, or on any other tribute floors. You don’t have that clearance,” Katherine said simply.

“Cool,” Josie said, and was heading to the elevator when Stefan said,

“You know, I could use a walk too.” He walked up to Josie and asked, “You mind?” She shook her head. The two of them got in the elevator, and rode down in complete silence. Josie looked out the elevator window and saw lights and fireworks surrounding the building they’d been in during the parade. People were partying on the streets, and drinking expensive beer probably given to them by people in the Districts who couldn’t afford it for themselves. How could they live like that without feeling some guilt?

“Are you alright?” Stefan asked, breaking the silence. Josie noticed her reflection in the window and saw the anguish covering her face. She nodded quickly and said,

“I’m fine.” The small break in her voice showed that she wasn’t, but luckily for her, Stefan didn’t really push her on it. The elevator reached the bottom and opened. Josie stepped out, and saw that there was actually a lot of room to walk. She was hoping that meant she and Stefan could part ways, but her mentor stayed by her side.

“You don’t have to babysit me,” Josie said, “I can find my way back by myself.”

“Not a babysitter,” Stefan said, “Ms. Pierce isn’t going to be the one to say it, but we’re not supposed to leave you guys alone. Just in case…” he trailed off, and placed his finger to his throat, imitating a knife going through it. Josie was going to scoff and say that the other tributes weren’t going to kill her before they got the chance to on live TV, but then she realized Stefan hadn’t meant in case  _ other _ tributes killed her, he meant in case she…

“Oh,” Josie said, unable to finish her own thoughts. Stefan just gave her a small nod, and they continued their walk in silence until Josie said, “I would never, you know, do  _ that. _ I promised my sister I would win. I’d at least like to try.”

“You must love your sister a lot,” Stefan commented.

“I do,” Josie said, “More than anyone.” The nod Stefan gave her was an almost knowing nod.  _ Had Stefan had any siblings? _ Josie had been only four when Stefan won the games twelve years ago, so she didn’t know much about his life before then. Stefan didn’t seem in a talking mood, so she didn’t ask. As the two of them turned a hallway, Stefan said,

“Stay here, I’ll be right back.”

“What happened to not leaving me alone?” Josie called as he walked away. He didn’t answer.  _ Strange man, _ she thought. Now by herself, Josie studied the room around her. It was about as big as the Hob, except a lot more clean. Living in the Seam had really limited Josie’s exposure to places like this. The nicest place in town was actually Josie’s school, but since the building was so big, the school found themselves skipping out on things such as computers or good lunch. Kids had to bring their own food from home, and Josie and Lizzie never had much.

“Are you waiting for someone?” Josie heard someone asked, and she immediately jumped and turned around. She saw Hope standing behind her in a robe with a curly “M” etched on the left side. Her face was free of makeup and she smelled strongly of the sweet Capitol soap. 

“Uh yeah, my mentor,” Josie said, “Who are you here with?”

“My mentor,” Hope said, “Who is also my father, but you knew that, right?”

“Sure,” Josie said, deciding to not state the fact that she’d only made the connection during the parade. Hope circled Josie and said,

“You know, maybe I was wrong earlier. You might just make it past the first day.” Hope placed a finger on Josie’s shoulder, and it made her shudder for a bit. She moved her finger down towards her thigh and said, “Your build isn’t...terrible. And those legs…” As Hope got closer, Josie could smell the beer thick on her breath.

“Are you drunk?” she asked, but she found her interest in that question fading at Hope’s finger started moving lower and lower and lower-

“Hey!” Stefan called, stopping Hope, “What’s going on here?” Hope removed her finger, gave Stefan the only smile Josie had seen faker than Katherine’s, and said,

“I was just apologizing for earlier. I was being rude.”

“A Mikaelson apologizing,” Stefan said, “Who’d have thought?” Josie frowned.  _ What would Stefan know about the Mikaelsons? _ Before today, Josie had never met anyone from District 2. 

“Hope?” the three of them heard Klaus ask, “Where did you go off to?” Josie could tell from his tone that Hope had left without telling him. Hope rolled her eyes and said,

“In here, Dad.” Klaus came around the corner and walked up to them, putting a smile on his face when he saw Hope wasn’t alone.

“Mr. Salvatore,” he said when he saw Stefan, “I didn’t realize you were down here.” 

“I’m just making sure Josette isn’t falling in with the wrong crowd, that’s all,” Stefan said, giving a pointed look to Hope. Hope winked at Josie, and she felt that same shiver from earlier. She didn’t know how to explain it. Being with Hope made her nervous, but she didn’t want her to leave.

“You don’t need to worry about us. We’re heading up, right Hope?” he asked his daughter. There was a subtle scolding tone in his voice, so Hope sighed and said,

“Yes, Dad. Goodnight Yvette.”

“Josette.”

“Whatever.” Hope walked away with her Dad, who put an arm around her to keep her steady. Yep, definitely drunk. Once they were out of earshot, Stefan asked,

“What was that about?”

“Nothing...I think,” Josie said. She turned to Stefan, and she saw that he was holding two water bottles. He noticed her confused expression, and he said,

“I can’t stand the water from up there too.” He handed Josie the bottle and said, “This is sent in from 4. It’s not great, but…”

“It’s better,” Josie said, “Thanks, Stefan.” She opened the bottle and took a sip, allowing the liquid to go over her lips. Oh that tasted nice.

“Shall we?” Stefan asked in regards to continuing their walk.

“Sure,” Josie said. She fell in line with Stefan and walked with him down the hallway, “So, do you and Hope’s Dad know each other?”

“One could definitely say that,” Stefan said, taking a sip of water.

“Was he a mentor for the tributes your year?” Josie asked. Stefan nodded, “Did you meet him then? What was he like?”

“Josette, this is really not something I want to get into with you.”

“Stefan, I’m not dumb,” Josie said, “I know that in the next week, I’m not going to be here anymore. So can you please just tell me?” Stefan paused and said,

“You may be one of the only volunteers who doesn’t have any faith.”

“Yeah well, I didn’t exactly want to volunteer, now did I?”

“No you did not. Come on, let’s get some air, and I’ll tell you.”

“But Katherine said-”   


“Katherine isn’t in charge of me,” he said, “Let’s go.” He led Josie out of the Tribute Tower, and Josie relished in the cool air of the Capitol. It actually wasn’t too bad. The parties had died down a bit, so Josie could enjoy the quiet. She followed Stefan to a small bench, and hopped on next to him.

“So, Klaus?” she asked.

“Klaus was a Career Tribute, just like his daughter,” Stefan said, “And like I said earlier, those guys train in a special academy, and when they’re 18, they’ll volunteer. It’s in groups of 2, for obvious reasons, and that year, the top two were Klaus and a woman named Hayley Marshall. Klaus and Hayley trained together for a long time, and eventually that led to them doing...other stuff.” 

“And then what?”

“Then, Hayley started feeling sick around the Reaping, so she went to a doctor who told her she was pregnant. Considering she was set to volunteer her life in a few days, that didn’t bode well. So when the Reaping came around, she didn’t do it. She begged Klaus not to, but he’d trained his whole life for this, so he wasn’t backing down. He promised her that he wouldn’t let anything stand in his way of getting home to her and the baby. And he didn’t.”

“So what? You hate him because he won?” That didn’t sound fair considering Stefan had competed in the same games and won.

“There were twenty three other tributes in their Josette,” Stefan said, taking another sip from his bottle, “One of them being my brother, Damon.” Josie, who’d been drinking as well, immediately paused. She put down her water bottle and said,

“Your brother competed?” Stefan nodded somberly, “Did...did Klaus...?”

“Staked him right through the heart,” Stefan said, “And Damon, he was a good fighter. He made it all the way to second place. Klaus was just better.”

“I’m so sorry,” Josie said. She couldn’t imagine what Stefan was going through. She was also in shock because she’d never heard the name Damon Salvatore before. It was almost like he didn’t exist.

“Yep. While Klaus got to go home and celebrate his riches with his new family, my Mother and I got to bury my brother,” he said, “Then six years later, when I was picked, she couldn’t handle it. So, rather than watch another one of her sons die, she grabbed a kitchen knife and slit her own throat with it.” Josie’s eyes widened.

“Stefan, oh my God,” she said. She didn’t even know what to say. Did she comfort him? And if she did, how would she do so? Stefan gave her a dry laugh and said,

“I wonder how she would have reacted if she’d found out I made it back. You know, I still remember, waking up in that hospital room after, getting ready to see her again after those three weeks, so imagine my surprise when that goddamn Peacekeeper told me the news.” His fingers tightened around the water bottle, and Josie watched it crinkle, “Anyway, I requested all news about my Mother or Damon be stripped from record, and as a victor, I got that kind of power, so I know you don’t know any of this.”

“No, I don’t,” Josie said.

“And after all that, it was just easier spending all of my time at home or here,” Stefan said, “The Victor’s Village is lonely, but hey, at least I don’t have to explain my story to people.”

“Don’t you ever wish you had somebody with you?” Josie asked. If she’d lost that much, she’d like to have the company.

“There was a girl...once,” Stefan admitted, “But it’s old history.” Josie noticed him almost genuinely smile at that, so she decided to poke.

“ Oh yeah?” she asked, “Who is she?”

“None of your business, that’s who!” he said.

“Hey, I’m dying, remember?” Josie asked. Stefan glared at her and said,

“You really like milking that don’t you? You know, you could survive. Just because some of the tributes are stronger, doesn’t mean you won’t make it. Most tributes usually die of exposure.”

“Hey I’m already betting my coin on Hope Mikaelson,” Josie said while Stefan shook his head, “C’mon, just tell me! Please?”

“Anyone ever tell you that you’re insufferable?”

“Nope. My friends and family think I’m a delight!” 

“Alright alright,” Stefan said after Josie continued to keep asking, “She was the “popular girl” from school. Her name was Caroline Forbes.” Josie, who’d been drinking her water, immediately spit it out. Stefan jumped away and exclaimed,

“What the hell was that for?”   


“Caroline Forbes? That’s my mother, you creep!” Josie exclaimed.

“Mother?” Stefan asked crossly, “I’m what, twelve years older than you? There’s no way Caroline could have had you in that time.”

“Caroline didn’t give birth to me, my sister and I are adopted,” Josie said, “My Dad died in a mining accident and Mom died in childbirth. My family doesn’t have the best luck.”

“Welcome to the club,” Stefan said. There was a moment of silence and he asked, “So how is she? Caroline?” 

“Awful,” Josie said, “Lizzie and I keep her as happy as she can be, but I worry that when she watches me die in the games...I just worry.” 

“Then I guess you can’t die then, huh?” Stefan asked. Josie frowned at her mentor, “You aren’t giving yourself enough credit. I told you, I never met a volunteer who didn’t have faith, and I still don’t think I have. I don’t like saying this, but I think if you want to win, then you’ve got a chance.”

“You don’t even know me,” Josie said.

“ I don’t have to,” Stefan said, getting up from the bench, “Don’t let your family be the next District 12 tragedy. You’ve got training first thing in the morning. This will be your chance to get to know your opponents. You’ll see their strengths and their weaknesses. And if you want to do this, if you really want to win, you’ll put your best foot forward, and show Hope Mikaelson, no, show all of them what you’re made of. Can you do that?” Stefan was intense when he wasn’t drunk, “Josette?” Josie took one more sip of her water, stood up and said,

“Yeah, I can do that.” Stefan nodded before saying that it was time for him to take her back upstairs before Katherine got worried. They got into the elevator together, and Josie felt a lot more comfortable than she had before, though she did still think about Hope as the elevator passed floor 2. She wondered what she was up to right now. Was she passed out drunk, or running strategies with Klaus? Hope wished she could stop and see. The elevator reached the penthouse, and when they stepped out, Stefan said,

“Goodnight, Josette.”

“Goodnight,” Josie said, but before she went into her room, she continued with “Stefan?” Her mentor turned to her, “You can call me Josie, if you’d like.” A small smile graced his face.

“Goodnight, Josie,” he said.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you guys liked this one, next chapter is training!


	4. Chapter 4

Josie studied her reflection in the mirror. The training outfit didn’t look terrible, but it still felt awfully tight. It was a red and grey body suit that had been made special for each tribute, but it still didn’t feel as nice as she would have liked. At least she looked good, though. Josie moved to the vanity, and braided her long hair into a single braid before going out to eat breakfast. Landon was there this time, and Josie saw a water bottle at every place setting. Stefan, who’d just came out of his room, gave Josie a short nod before going to his seat. He held his usual flask, but Josie was going to let it slide. With what he’d told her last night, she honestly didn’t care. Josie sat across from Landon and asked,

“Where were you last night?”

“Wasn’t hungry,” the boy said before digging into his eggs. Josie guessed he didn’t have the same sentiments right now. She spooned some oatmeal in her bowl and ate it slowly. There was a whole lavish spread set out in front of her, but she could barely stomach any of it. Stefan was the opposite, helping himself to one of everything.

“These are really good,” he said around a croissant. Josie sighed and picked one up for her plate. It wouldn’t kill her to try something else. While she and Landon continued to eat, Stefan began to explain the training room to them.

“It’s all twenty four of you showing the game makers what you’ve got,” he said, “To put it simple, this is where you really put your name out there to both the sponsors, and your opponents. So...what are you two good at, exactly?” 

“Josie is good with a bow,” Landon said, “She’s the best shot I know. When she brings a squirrel to the shop, it’ll be shot right through the eye.” Stefan nodded in approval. Josie didn’t like the attention only being focused on her, so she said,

“Landon is super strong. He can carry the one hundred pound sacks of flour in the bakery without breaking a sweat,” Josie said.

“Well I don’t think there will be any sacks of flour in the arena, so…” Landon said.

“I’m just trying to help you.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, I am. There won’t be any flour, but strength will come in handy if you ever come face to face with a tribute, and don’t have a weapon, or-”

“Just cut the crap, Josie,” Landon said, startling her, “You can try to sugarcoat it all you want for me, but if it came down to just you and me out there, we both know who would make it.”

“Landon, you don’t know that-”

“Do you know what my Mom said to me when she came to say goodbye?” he asked. Josie shook her head, knowing she wouldn’t like the answer, “She said that this might be the first time in years that the victor was from District 12.” He paused, “Only she didn’t mean me.” 

“Landon-”

“I’m not hungry anymore,” he said, pushing away from the table. He stomped off to his room, leaving Josie alone with Stefan. Stefan tapped her shoulder and asked,

“What’re you thinking about?”

“Landon’s brother is my best friend,” Josie said, “And after saying goodbye to Landon, he said goodbye to me. I said I’d keep him safe, but he also said that I would be the one to…” Josie trailed off, not wanting to finish. Stefan gave her a solemn nod and said,

“Well, what can we do, right? There can only be one winner.” Josie found herself no longer able to eat after that.

The training room was located in the basement of the Tribute Tower. It was a huge space with all kinds of weaponry, weights, and computers. All the tributes were lined up by height, and Josie found it funny that she and Landon were in the back with Roman, while Hope was near the front with a lot of the younger tributes. She really was tiny. A woman named Eva came to address them. Josie noticed that she and Klaus both had a thick accent that she hadn’t heard once before coming here.

“The rules in here are simple,” Eva said, “This is a safe training space. You’re allowed to train with each other, but you’re not allowed to cause any intentional harm towards the other tributes. There will be plenty of time for that in the arena.” Josie noticed many of the tributes around her stiffen at that statement, Landon included. But Josie kept her head high. She wasn’t going to show fear. Eva continued her speech with, “The next four days are all yours. You can take every opportunity you can with them, or not. It’s all your decision. Good luck tributes. You may begin.” The line immediately dispersed after she said that. Hope and the other Career tributes went to the weapon, and the girl from 1...Maya, Josie believed, took the bow.  _ Dammit _ . Josie distanced herself from the Careers and tried to find something to do. There were weights set up, and Sebastian was currently doing pull ups on one of the bar. His district mate Alyssa had found a knife, and was practicing throwing, and her shot was good, but nowhere near as good as Hope’s. Josie visibly gulped as she watched Hope throw knives towards a dummy in a perfect line. The game makers that were watching seemed very impressed. Hope smirked at the applause she got from them and said,

“It’s in my blood.” Armed with her knowledge that Hope was the daughter of not one, but  _ two _ trained Careers, Josie didn’t doubt that for a second. Josie watched as the girl from Five worked at one of the computers. She had no idea what she was doing, but the fact that the girl knew how to work Capitol technology meant something, right? Josie couldn’t even figure out the shower. The next tribute Josie saw was Kym. She actually seemed to have some skill with the staff she was holding. Her moves were slender, and her footwork was amazing. Josie would have fallen several times doing those moves. Kym was making a flip when all of the sudden, someone jumped down and knocked her over. Josie was shocked, and expected Kym to fight back, but the other girl just laughed and pushed the other tribute off of her. She wiped some sweat off her face and said,

“You’re getting better.”

“Better? You didn’t even see me up there!” the boy said with pride. Josie recognized him as Milton, the volunteer from 11. Kym shook her head to hide a laugh, but the laugh vanished when she saw Josie staring at them.

“What do you want?” she asked crossly.

“Nothing,” Josie said quickly, not wanting to cause trouble. While Kym stared at her with hostility, Milton offered her a small smile. He’d been the first tribute she’d met so far to do so. She wasn’t sure if she preferred that or the hostility. It wasn’t like she should be making friends with these people. There was only one winner, so it was every tribute for themselves. She quickly left Milton and Kym, listening as Kym helped him up so they could do drills. She got a bit of comfort seeing them work together. They were the first non Career tributes to do so. It made her want to find Landon. She was hoping that he found himself a place away from everyone to work, so she got an unpleasant surprise when she saw him in the middle, attempting a pull up. Josie could see his arms well from his training suit, and they were strong, but not near as strong as Roman’s, or even Rafael’s. Landon made it up about halfway, but it wasn’t long before his arms gave out and he was on the ground. The Careers laughed at him like schoolyard bullies, pointing and everything.

“Pathetic,” the District 1 boy said. Josie couldn’t remember his name, so she was kind of answered when Maya said,

“Come on, Jed, let’s get out of here.” The two tributes were walking away, Roman and Hope following them. Josie went to Landon and helped him to his feet.

“You should probably be staying away from me,” Landon said.

“We’ve got the same number on our shoulders, that may not be possible,” Josie said. She then pointed to one of the big metal balls stacked by the weights, “Throw one of those.”

“Huh?” Josie pushed him forward.

“Throw it! As far as you can,” she said. All the tributes had their attention away from the two of them, but Landon still grabbed the heaviest ball, and swung it towards the wall with pretty marvelous strength. It crashed against a pile of staffs, knocking them all down. The Careers paused in their tracks, and turned to them. Josie could see a flash of fear in Jed’s eyes. One of the watching gamemakers clapped for Landon, and Josie watched as the boy allowed himself to smile for just one second.

On the next day of training, Josie made a beeline for the bow, getting it before Maya. She could feel the girl glaring at her, but decided not to let it get to her. She went to the targets, and pulled an arrow out. This bow was a lot more firm then the one at home, but that made sense considering she’d made that one with wood from her backyard. She aimed it at her target, but her fingers slipped on the release, and the arrow went to the side of the target.

“Hey Josette,” she heard Hope call. _Oh now she knew her name._ Josie turned and saw the Career staring at her with a smirk on her face, “Just a tip for the arena, you might want to make sure the arrow actually hits your opponent.” Josie wasn’t going to let Hope bother her.

“Oh yeah?” she asked, “If you’re so good, why don’t you try?” She shoved the bow in Hope’s face, and the look she was giving her showed she’d never touched a bow before in her life. Hope just laughed and said,

“Please, I don’t play with weapons like that.” She arched her arm back and threw one of her knives directly into the target’s chest, “Better luck next time.” She left with the other Careers, and Josie re-aimed the bow. She needed to get this right. It took her a few tries, but she was finally able to get a good grip. She aimed again, and hit the target right in the eye. She could feel someone behind her, and when she turned she saw Hope, with peaked interest on her face. When she noticed Josie had turned around, she quickly walked off, but it was too late. Josie knew she’d been watching. Her only question was why. Why was it that she kept finding herself around Hope Mikaelson?

Josie had ended up surrendering her bow to Maya after making her shot, and she went to find Landon, who’d been working on something by the tables the whole time. Josie went to sit next to him, and saw that he’d painted most of his hand a weird brown pattern.

“Landon, what are you doing?” she asked him.

“Camouflage. Check this out,” the boy said. He put down the paint and went to one of the fake trees by the wall. He pressed his hand against it, and Josie gaped as it blended right in. “Cool, huh?”

“Yeah,” Josie said, “Can I feel it?” Landon nodded, and Josie ran her hand over the camouflage on Landon’s hand. It still felt like skin, but she knew that if Landon’s whole body had been covered, and she was in the arena, she probably wouldn’t be able to notice him. He really had a chance with this. The only thing that was worrisome was that it took such a long time. 

“What have you been doing?” Landon asked as Josie continued to feel his hand.

“I got to work with the bow,” Josie said, “It’s a lot different than the one at home.”

“I get that. Hopefully it went better than yesterday,” he said.

“Nope, not at first,” Josie said, “But once I figured out how it worked, it actually wasn’t that bad. Hopefully there’s a bow in the arena.” Rafael had told her to make one, but she had a feeling she’d need one that was on par with the one the Capitol had, otherwise she’d get killed.

“You’ve got paint on your face,” Landon said. He grabbed a small rag from the table with his clean hand and wiped it off. Josie didn’t realize that people were staring until Landon was done wiping it off. Hope stood with her arms crossed, and a scowl on her face.  _ What the hell was her deal? _ Josie knew it wasn’t wise to anger her competitors, but she liked that pout on Hope’s face, and she was in a mood to be petty, so she moved her free hand to Landon’s face, and moved some of his curls out of the way.

“Are you okay, Josie?” Landon asked, but he blushed at the touch.

“Yeah, I’m fine,” Josie said. She looked at Hope out of the corner of her eye, and watched her roll her eyes and stomp away.  _ Perfect _ . 

The third day of training was the last one the tributes all did together. Training tomorrow would be a private session with just each tribute and the game makers. They would then be ranked on a scale of one to twelve. The Careers would usually get scores from eight to ten, while the other districts would be around six or seven. Stefan said to put their best foot forward, since the tribute with the best scores were the ones that got the best sponsors.

The day started off just like any other, until Roman accused the boy from District 6 of stealing his knife. Josie was hoping the disagreement would just get brushed off, but Roman was pissed. He chased after the boy and shoved him hard.

“Give me back my knife!” he shouted at him.

“I didn’t take your goddamn knife!” the other boy said. He yelled loud, but Josie could see the panic in his eyes as Roman lingered over him. Eva soon had to interfere and keep the two boys away from each other.

“You watch your back in the arena!” Roman shouted, “You’ll be the first one I find, I promise you that!” Josie winced at his voice echoed throughout the room. She turned away from the Careers, and focused her attention on the staffs. She wanted to get better at combat. She picked one up, and looked around for Landon to ask if they could train together. She saw him attempting to climb the giant net at the end of the room. He was doing okay, but he wasn’t doing great. He was in the middle, and he was starting to lose his grip. He flipped over two times before falling to the ground. The Careers got a laugh out of that, and it put a sick smile on Roman’s previously angry face. Josie ran to Landon and helped him up. 

“You don’t have to keep coming to save me,” he said.

“I’m not saving you,” Josie said. She lifted the staff, “I need a sparring partner.”

“I think I’ve embarrassed myself enough over the past couple of days without having to bring you into it,” he said.

“C’mon, don’t be like that,” Josie said, “Let’s just try it out.” Landon sighed, but he agreed. Josie used the staff, and he blocked. Landon’s main skills definitely landed in combat, just as Josie had expected. Josie wasn’t the best with the long staff, but she was still able to make some good moves, and Landon was able to dodge most of them, except her last one where she knocked him on his feet.

“Not bad, Saltzman,” Landon said as Josie helped him up.

“Thanks Lan,” she said, using the nickname Rafael gave him when they were kids. Landon opened his mouth to respond, but he was cut off by Hope Mikaelson’s slow clapping. The girl walked onto the mat and said,

“Well well, I guess 12 may not have total failures this year.”

“Don’t you have your own training to do?” Josie asked the girl, “Or does yours only consist of harassing me at all hours?” She added that in reference to the night in the lobby. If Hope understood what she was referring to, she didn’t show it.

“Is that your weapon of choice?” Hope asked, pointing to the staff.

“No,” Josie said, her gaze flitting over to the bow that Maya had clamped in her hands. If Josie wanted a bow in the arena, Maya would be who she’d fight for it. Hope took a staff from Jed and said,

“I am interested, to say the least, how you do with this,” Hope said, twirling her staff in her hands. She came to stand right in front of Josie and asked, “Will you train with me?” Her breath felt hot on Josie’s face, and it made her stomach almost flutter.

“Um, I don’t really, I don’t, um…” she stuttered out. At a distance, she could stand up to the shorter girl, but with her this close, and in her outfit which perfectly accentuated her curves...

“Oh sure you can,” Hope said, cutting off Josie’s thoughts. She looked at Landon and cleared her throat. The boy quickly ran off the mat, giving Josie a soft “good luck.” Left alone with Hope on the mat, Josie felt like she wouldn’t even need to get into the arena before she died. Hope would probably take her out right here, and she’d let her. Hope put a bit more space between them, and planted her feet, getting her staff ready. Everyone who’d been training had come to watch, so Josie decided that she had to give them a good show. She twirled her staff and got into a fighting position.

“Ready?” Hope asked.

“Ready,” Josie said, tightening her grip on the staff. Hope charged at her, and Josie quickly ducked down. Hope seemed to anticipate her move, because she twisted her feet and did a whole jump over Josie, who crouched down. When Hope was back on the ground, she swung at Josie, who only narrowly missed it. She kicked a foot out to knock Hope off balance, but Hope flipped into the air again before landing a blow right to Josie’s chest. Josie was knocked down to the ground, and she grunted as pain from the hit went through her body, but she couldn’t stay down. She had to fight back. Josie used her free hand to propel herself up, and swung the staff towards Hope’s head. She hit the smaller girl right by the ear, which made her angry. The two of them went at it, matching each other shot for shot. Josie was hating the staff less and less. It wasn’t too bad. However, she realized she’d spoken too soon when Hope knocked Josie’s staff from her hands and kicked her down. 

“Boom, you’re dead,” she said, pointing the staff at Josie. But Josie wasn’t down yet. She grabbed the staff and pulled, dragging Hope down with it. The other girl hit the ground with a thump, and Josie rolled over to grab her staff, but was grabbed roughly by Hope when she did.

“Nice try, 12,” Hope pretty much growled. She tightened her grip on Josie, and Josie started to panic as she felt herself losing breaths. Hope was actually trying to hurt her. Josie tried to think. If she were in the arena right now, what would she do? She’d look for supplies, that’s what. Her staff wasn’t too far, she could get to it. As Hope tightened her hold, Josie reached for the staff. She clasped her hands around it, and swung back at Hope. She hit her hard enough to get her to let go and fall back to the mat. Josie got to her feet and stuck the staff at Hope.

“Might wanna make sure I’m actually down first,” Josie said. She expected Hope to at least try and fight back, but instead the girl pulled herself to her feet and walked away. Roman quickly followed her, and he called Jed and Maya to follow him. As Josie dusted herself off, Landon came to her.

“That was insane!” he exclaimed, “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine,” Josie said, though her chest hurt from where Hope had hit and squeezed it. 

“You’re lucky no one saw,” Landon commented, “We’re not supposed to intentionally hurt each other.” He quoted Eva. She sighed and said,

“I didn’t want to. That was all her.” And she’d done good. Both of her legs and her shoulders were on fire! She worked to ignore the pain as she picked the staffs up and went to put them back. Her step was a little staggered, but it felt better by the time training ended, and they were having dinner with Stefan. Stefan plopped down in his seat with an unusual smile.

“What?” Josie asked.

“Well a little birdy,” he said, his gaze going to Landon, “Informed me that during training today, you took on a Career tribute and won.”  _ Goddammit Landon! _ Josie was hoping no one outside the other tributes would have to know.

“Please, I barely won,” Josie said, trying to remain modest, “She knocked me down first. If it had been the arena, I would have been dead.”

“Don’t think about that,” Stefan said, “Just focus on the fact that it ended with her on the ground.” Josie knew Stefan was getting some joy out of her taking down his rival’s daughter, so she decided not to kill his mood with pessimism and moved the focus off of her.

“Landon was great today too,” Josie said, “He dodged a lot of my moves.”

“Yeah, except the last one where you knocked me on my ass,” he said, though surprisingly, it wasn’t crossly. He was kind of laughing.

“Hey hey, don’t cut yourself down. Sometimes being able to keep your own is all that matters. Then when they knock you down, keep at it. You never know what’ll happen in close combat.” Josie wondered if he was referring to Damon or himself when he said that. Dinner was mostly a quiet affair after that, but Josie could just tell Stefan was proud of her. Of both of them. She went to bed that night feeling somewhat better, but, like most previous nights, she never stopped thinking about Hope Mikaelson.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to everyone who has been reading! Next chapter is the last one before the arena...


	5. Chapter 5

In the morning, Josie slid into her training outfit for the last time before going out to breakfast. She’d hated the outfit three days ago, but now she was kind of going to miss it. She’d grown a kind of attachment to it considering she’d been in it ten hours a day. She sat at the table where Stefan was munching on a croissant. She took two, and was buttering them when she saw that Landon hadn’t joined them yet.

“Stefan, where is he?” she asked.

“Oh, he wanted to get some private training in before your evaluations,” Stefan said, “But in the meantime, you and I can talk about your interview tonight. The one thing to know is-”

“Why private training?” Josie asked. She’d kind of been having fun with both of them. It was weird, but she felt comfortable around Stefan and Landon.

“Well Josie, there comes that time at the end of a tribute’s stay here when it really hits them that there can only be one,” Stefan said simply, “Now, about the interview…” Josie let him go on about how she had to put on a good show while talking to Enzo, the same announcer from the parade, but Landon stayed on her mind. He really thought he wasn’t going to make it out. 

“You’ll be meeting with Dorian a few hours after your training score comes out,” Stefan said, “That training score will be a huge component of what Enzo will want to talk to you about. Whether it’s good or bad, you’re going to want to make it look good, because that entire crowd is going to be filled with sponsors who will want to support a winner.”

“So basically I should just do really well at my evaluation?”

“Yeah, pretty much.”

“Good to know,” Josie said. The two of them finished breakfast, then the twenty four tributes were taken into a small room to wait for their turns. Josie saw Hope sitting by Roman near the front. The girl looked extremely confident. Josie knew she’d get at least a ten. Josie herself would be lucky enough to get a seven. Her archery skills weren’t that impressive compared to what she’d seen from the Careers. At least she could admit they were better than Maya’s. She’d watched the girl with the bow over the past few days, and she wasn’t that great at it. Not bad, but not great. Landon came in a few moments later, and there was some faint sweat on his face.

“Where were you?” Josie asked him. He just shrugged, clearly not in the mood to talk. Considering they had to sit here until everyone else was done, this was not going to be a fun morning.

“Jed Harker, report to the training room for your evaluation,” an automated announcer said. Jed stood up from his seat and walked down a long hallway. None of the other tributes could hear what was going on back there, but he was only gone for about five minutes. Maya was called right after him, though she was gone a little longer. Maybe there was no set time to be in there.

“Hope Mikaelson, report to the training room for your evaluation,” the voice said after Roman came back. The smaller girl got up from her chair, and gave Josie an almost smug look before walking down the hallway. Josie wished Hope would stop doing that. It put too much attention on her. Roman waited for Hope, and the two of them left together when she was done. Hope had been wearing a wide smirk on her face, so Josie figured it had gone well. The rest of the time dragged on, and Josie was honestly getting kinda bored. She was near sleep when Milton was called. She straightened up after hearing his name. That meant it was just him, Kym, Landon, then her. 

“Landon Kirby, report to the training room for your evaluation,” it said soon after Kym had finished. Josie wished him good luck, and he was gone, leaving Josie alone in the room. She studied her feet while she waited for Landon to finish, noting that it had been a while. The minutes ticked by, and Josie’s heart rate was increasing. Landon still wasn’t back yet, and she felt like it was taking longer than the other tributes. Or maybe it just felt like that because she was up next. Landon did finally come out of the room, and while Josie wanted to ask, he left before she could.

“Josette Saltzman, report to the training room for your evaluation,” the voice said. The last thing it would be saying for this game. Josie got up from her seat and went down the hallway that all the other tributes had already gone through. It felt weird being last. She wondered if the other tributes felt comfort at knowing there were several others at the end of the hallway. Or maybe they didn’t care. Josie entered the training room, and saw the game makers, but they weren’t paying much attention. They were chatting and laughing like they were out to lunch together. Maybe they were just tired because they’d already watched twenty three other people. Either way, she made her presence known.

“I’m Josette Saltzman,” she said, getting their attention for a bit, “District 12.” The game makers didn’t answer, so she just decided to get to it. She grabbed the bow from the weapon stand, and took some arrows. She pulled one out and aimed at the target. She fired, but the shot wasn’t that good. She went a few more times, until she got three in the heart, and one in the eye. She was proud of herself, so she turned to the game makers for some validation, only to see that their attention wasn’t on her, but rather on a giant pig that had just been brought in.

“You’ve gotta be kidding me,” she murmured. They were all fawning over the pig, who had a giant apple in its mouth. The apple gave Josie an idea. She took an arrow, pulled it back in the boy, and shot it right towards the apple. The arrow went right through and shot the apple into the wall. Some of the game makers squealed, while the main one looked kind of impressed, yet scared. He turned to Josie, who gave an awkward bow and said,

“Thank you for your consideration.” She then put the bow and arrows back on the stand, and headed back out the hallway.

“You insubordinate child!” Katherine exclaimed that afternoon after lunch. A lunch where she’d spent the entire time lecturing Josie on her disrespect, “This training evaluation is one of the most important things to do before entering the arena, and what do you do? This might be the biggest scandal I’ve ever had to deal with. What do you have to say for yourself?”

“Sorry?” Josie ended up asking instead of saying. Katherine shook her head. 

“This isn’t going to go well, they’re going to be angry. If they get angry, your chances of getting sponsors will go out the window!”

“You’re right,” Josie said, “I probably should’ve just killed them off then. No witnesses would have boded better for me, don’t you think?” Katherine didn’t think so, because she rolled up the newspaper she’d been holding and hit Josie hard with it in the head. “Ow!”

“You-you-go to your room!” Katherine spluttered out.  _ Could she do that? _ Stefan entered the room followed by Landon, and said,

“Hey hey, don’t send her out, the broadcast is about to start.” As he passed Josie to get some ice for his bourbon, he made eye contact with her and gave her a thumbs up. Josie smiled, glad to see that Stefan was on her side.

“Oh, this District is ruined!” Katherine exclaimed before walking off. Stefan hopped on the side of the couch opposite to Josie while Landon sat next to her.

“What was it that you said to them again?” Stefan asked, having already heard the story from Josie during lunch.

“I shot the arrow at them, then I said thank you for your consideration,” Josie said. Stefan said it along with her and burst into laughter.

“Priceless! I wish I could have seen their smug faces,” he said, taking a sip, “Good freaking job, sweetheart!” he exclaimed. 

“Thank you, Stefan,” Josie said. She really liked having his validation. Landon smiled at her and also offered a good job, which was a lot more than she’d gotten earlier.

“Thanks,” she said, “Did it go okay for you?” He shrugged,

“It is what it is,” he said.  _ Well okay then. _ The broadcast started soon after, and Stefan called Katherine to come back and watch. Josie started to get nervous. What if she got like, a zero? The rankings started. Jed and Maya both got nines, which were to be expected from Careers. 

“Up next we have Hope Mikaelson, with a score of 10,” Enzo said, showing Hope’s tribute picture with a flashing 10. Her tribute picture was pretty. She looked dangerous, while still having a young look to her face. Roman, who’d been before her, had also received a ten. Those would probably be the highest scores of the day. The scores kept coming. Sebastian from 4 got a 6, low compared to his district mate Alyssa, who’d gotten a 9, Penelope from 5 got an 8, Milton got a 7, and Kym got a 9. Now it was her turn.

“Here we have Landon Kirby, with a score of 8,” Enzo announced, with an 8 going over Landon’s picture. Stefan, Katherine, and Josie all congratulated him. An 8 was pretty good, especially since it was only one less than a Career.

“And last, but certainly not the least, our final tribute today, we have Miss Josette Saltzman, with a score of 11.” Stefan spit out his drink when the number 11 flashed over Josie’s picture, and the squeal Katherine let out may have smashed a glass.

“Holy shit,” Landon said, and Josie tried to think of some way to respond, but she was at a loss for words. She’d scored the highest out of everybody!  
“I need to make some calls, the sponsors are about to lose their minds!” Katherine said before walking off, “This District is saved!” 

“Ruining and saving it all in one day,” Landon said, “Good on you, Josie.” He gave her a comforting squeeze before getting up and heading to his room. 

“Do you think he’s going to be okay?” Josie asked. 

“He’ll be as okay as he can be,” Stefan said, taking another sip of his beer, “But considering all the Careers just saw that score right there, I think you might want to start worrying about yourself.”  _ Trust me, _ Josie thought, thinking about her fight with Hope yesterday,  _ I definitely am. _

Josie didn’t see Landon until they were heading downstairs to go get ready for the interviews. This was her first time out of the tower in days. She was excited. Well, as excited as she could be considering the games started tomorrow. They got in a car that was waiting for them, and they were driven to the theatre where they would have their interviews. The cars all went in a back alley, and Josie and Landon were immediately separated, just like they had been the first night. Except this one required a lot less waxing. 

“There she is, my girl on fire,” Dorian said when they were reunited.

“Hey,” Josie said, giving the man a hug. It was really nice seeing him again. He wasted no time getting to work, and soon Josie was wearing a bright orange dress, and her hair was pinned back in a bun over her head, with some orange feathers entwined within.

“You look beautiful,” Dorian said as he looked her over, “What do you think?”

“I love it,” Josie said, meaning it this time. She was starting to feel a lot more comfortable in these extravagant Capitol outfits, “I’m nervous for this interview, though.”

“You’re gonna do great,” Dorian said, “I’ll be there in the audience the whole time. Any time you get nervous, just look at me and I’ll be there, all right?”

“I will. Thanks Dorian,” Josie said. Soon after that, she was standing in a line with all the other tributes. Girls went first for the interviews, so this time Landon was last. She was kind of glad because that meant she could get it over with sooner, and she wouldn’t feel that loneliness, though it had felt kind of cool going last for the evaluations. She could see Hope standing between Jed and Roman. She looked like a child standing with the two boys, who both had at least a foot on her. Her dress was amazing, though, and it made her look older. It was a paler orange than Josie’s, and it was a bit more puffy at the bottom, but she still looked beautiful.

“Jo, you’re kinda staring,” Landon said, breaking Josie’s observations of Hope.

“No I’m not,” she said, even thought she knew she was. But so what if she was! Hope was a beautiful girl, and she probably had tons of people back home staring at her. Josie had even caught Landon doing it a few times, but he was right. They were competitors, nothing more. Training yesterday had definitely been a reminder of that. So she kept her eyes forward as the interviews started.

“Our first tribute from the lovely District 1, let’s have a round of applause for Maya!” Enzo announced to the crowd. Josie wondered if she should clap, but the other tributes didn’t, so she just kept her hands to her side. Maya’s interview was pretty innocent. Besides saying that she was very prepared, there wasn’t anything too sinister about it. Jed’s was a different story. 

“I grew up watching these games, and I just knew that that was me, so yeah, I’m ready to kill, and I’m ready to represent my district,” Jed said. Josie could see visible nervousness in the tributes around her after that, and she felt it too. Her attention went back to the stage when it was Hope’s turn.

“Next we have a lovely young lady, the daughter of former victor Klaus Mikaelson, let’s welcome Hope!” Enzo announced. Hope walked on to a ton of applause. It was more than Maya and Jed had gotten combined. Josie saw a bit of annoyance in Roman’s face as Hope walked on. Now that was interesting.

“How are you doing today, Hope?” Enzo asked the girl

“I’m doing great, Enzo,” Hope told the man, “I’m feeling good, I’m confident, and I’m ready to win this thing for my District. And my Father of course,” she added, which got her more applause.

“Daddy’s girl,” Roman grumbled. Josie guessed that Hope used her Father being a past victor to her advantage when it came to sponsors. Was he worried Hope would beat him? Josie decided it wasn’t her business and went back to Hope’s interview.

“I’m very skilled with a knife,” she was saying.

“Oh really?” Enzo asked.

“Yeah, I could kill you from halfway across the room, and you wouldn’t even know I was there,” Hope said, which caused a silence in the audience until Enzo laughed it off.

“We’ve got one with spark here. Give it up for Hope!” The audience went back to cheering, and Hope did a simple curtsy before prancing off the stage. Roman went after her, and his was definitely one that was sticking with all the tributes.

“If I remember, you volunteered as well, didn’t you?” Enzo asked.

“I did,” Roman said, “I’m ready to fight, I’m ready to kill, and I’m excited. You put me in that arena, I promise I can have this over and done in just a few days.” 

“My my, have we a prepared tribute here. Let’s give it up for Roman!” He didn’t get nearly as much applause as Hope, which Josie knew made him mad, but it was still a good amount. And no one backstage liked his comment about ending the games in a few days.

“My stealth is a weapon of its own,” Penelope Park, the District 5 tribute said, “If I can keep myself hidden for long enough, I can make it out.”  _ Not bad, _ Josie thought, but she had a feeling stealth wasn’t going to beat one of Hope’s knives.

“Milton, I noticed your score of seven,” Enzo said to the boy from 11, “What is it that you think is your biggest strength? What’s your weapon of choice?”

“I’m good with a slingshot,” he said, “And uh, I’m really quiet.”

“Oh are you now?”

“Yeah,” he said, “And they can’t kill me if they can’t catch me.” The audience laughed at that, and Enzo gave him some applause before going,

“I can’t get enough of this kid. Give it up for Milton!” Now that Milton was done, it was Josie’s turn. She went to the top of the stairs to wait for Enzo to announce her.

“Up next we have our tribute who had the highest score, a score of 11 during her training evaluation. Let’s give it up for the girl on fire, Josette Saltzman!”  _ Why did he say her last name? He hadn’t said anyone else’s! _ Not that that was important right now. The cheering was loud as Josie walked on to the stage. She shook hands with Enzo then sat in the chair opposite from him. She looked into the audience for Dorian, and saw him sitting with Stefan in the middle. He saw her staring, and gave her a small thumbs up in support. Josie then focused her attention back to Enzo. She could do this.

“Now Josette, your score, one of an 11 at that was definitely one of the standouts for this year. How did that score come about?” Josie figured telling the real story would get her in trouble, so she flashed a fake smile and said,

“What can I say? I guess I know how to impress.” She was worried that had been too vague, but she got a nice response from the audience, so she went with it.

“Very nice, very nice. Josette, I’d like to move a little back, if that’s alright. Your Reaping really stood out to me. You’re the first ever volunteer from District 12. Why don’t you tell us more about that?”

“Well, my sister’s name was the one that was called,” Josie said. That fact gained her a lot of sympathy from the audience, “And she means everything to me. I couldn’t lose her, even if that meant she might lose me.” There were loud “awws” and cheers following that statement. 

“Did you get a goodbye with your sister before you arrived here?” Enzo asked.

“I did,” Josie said, “And she told me to win.”

“How did you respond to that?”

“I promised I would,” Josie admitted.

“Well, here’s hoping you get to go home to her, right everybody?” Everyone cheered in support, then Enzo went to the topic of her dress.

“I must say Ms. Saltzman, your outfit at the parade was a sight to remember. Was it scary wearing an outfit like that?” 

“Oh very much so,” Josie thought, “I was so scared my skin would burn off.” A roar of laughter followed, and Stefan gave her an approving nod from his seat. She was getting people to like her, which was definitely moving in the right direction. “I actually have some more of it. It’s in my dress here today. Would you like to see?” 

“Why yes, yes I think we would!” Enzo said, and the audience agreed, so Josie stood up, went to the middle of the stage, and twirled. She wasn’t sure how Dorian had put the flames in her dress, so she, like the rest of the audience, was surprised by the flames coming out in rings around the bottom of the dress. She finished twirling, and Enzo came up to her, clapping wildly.

“Well folks, isn’t that a spectacle! Let’s give it up for Josette Saltzman, the girl on fire!” Josie was given a standing ovation, so she decided to soak it all in. She waved, she blew kisses, and she skipped off the stage just like Hope had to give her a hint of youth. Stefan said the crowd would eat moments like that up. Klaus must have given Hope the same advice. Josie decided to wait backstage for Landon to finish, not feeling up to sitting alone with Katherine in the back room. It was strange being in the hallway alone without the other tributes, and scary to think that the next time she saw them, they’d be in the arena. And she’d be the one they wanted to take out.

“Let’s welcome our last tribute for the night, Landon!” Enzo announced, taking her attention away from her impending doom.  _ See, no last name for him _ , she thought. Thoughts like that could take her mind off the fear. She focused on Landon’s interview, where he was also talking about how the showers were confusing. Now he and Enzo were smelling each other. She decided not to question how they got there, and kept watching.

“Tell me Landon, is there anyone waiting for you back at home?” Enzo was asking.

“There’s my family,” Landon said, “My parents, my brother Raf…” Josie felt a twinge at hearing Rafael’s name. She missed him so much. She wondered if he’d been watching the interviews. Was he proud of her for playing into what they wanted to get sponsors, or did he think she was some Capitol pet? She felt like a pet.

“You seem to be a fine young man, Landon,” Enzo said, “Is there anyone special at home?” Landon laughed, and there were a bunch of “oohs” from the crowd when he said,

“Yeah, there was one girl. But she would never go for me.” That was definitely a surprise to Josie. Rafael said that he’d never heard of Landon being interested in a girl. She was intrigued now.

“Well, I’ll tell you what, how about you win those games, and then go back to her. There’s no way she would ever reject you after that.” It was true. If you won the Hunger Games, you’d be up to your nose in Capitol riches for the rest of your life. And for that to happen to someone who lived in the Seam...well no one could resist that.

“That might be kind of difficult,” Landon told Enzo.

“And why is that?”  _ Yeah why was that? _

“Because she came here with me,” Landon said. There was complete silence after he said that, and Josie had gone numb.  _ Had he just… _

“Oh, oh well this is just, this is just fan...mar...a surprise!” Enzo stuttered out. That was the first time Josie had seen the man at a loss for words, not that she could blame him. As they stood up, he said, “All the best to you, sir. Let’s give it up for Landon!” The audience cheered for Landon as he exited the stage, and he came back to find Josie seething. Stefan, who’d gotten up before the interview had even ended, was met with the sight of Josie storming towards the other boy.

“What the hell was that?” she asked, angrily grabbing him by his collar.

“Josie, let me explain,” he tried, but she was so angry.

“First you ignore me with your private training bullshit, and now what, you’ve got a crush on me?!” she asked. She didn’t even know where this anger was coming from, but she was mad.

“Josie let go of him,” Stefan was saying.

“Screw you, Landon,” she said, angrily pushing him away from her, an act that caused him to crash into the wall, hard. Not in the mood for apologies, Josie turned on her heel and stormed away.

That night was a somber affair. While all the other tributes dined together with their escort and many mentors, Josie and Landon stayed in their rooms, refusing to talk to one another. She was starting to feel bad for pushing him, but not bad enough that she’d go talk to him. She was getting hungry though. She knew Katherine and Stefan had food out. She just needed to get up and go to eat it. She was considering going to bed hungry, but she knew that wouldn’t be wise, especially since this was probably the last meal she was ever going to get. So she got off of her bed, brushed her hair, and went out to the living room. It was empty, except for Stefan who was laying on the couch, drinking whiskey.

“Look who finally decided to come out of hiding,” he said when he saw her.

“I wasn’t hiding, I was avoiding,” Josie said, “There’s a difference.”

“Sure,” Stefan said, “There’s food if you want it, and you don’t need to worry about running into Landon, I think he’s out for the night.”  _ Oh. Good. _ Josie made herself a plate of food from the table and ate it in silence while Stefan drank his whiskey. She looked out the window and saw that the city was still lit up. People were partying like they were the first night.

“Stefan?” Josie asked, “Am I allowed to take a walk?”

“I suppose. I’ll get my shoes,” he said, moving to get off the couch. Josie stopped him before he could, and said,

“No offense, but could I just go by myself? I promise, I won’t do anything. You have my word.” She wasn’t going to hurt herself, but she needed to be alone.

“Fine, but it’s everyone’s funeral if you’re not back here,” he said. Josie nodded, not doubting that for a second. She finished her dinner, then went down the elevator. It opened to the lobby she’d been in with Stefan all those days ago, but she didn’t want to stay in the lobby. She left to the elevator at the far end that led to the training center in the basement. When she got there, she expected it to be empty, so she stopped in her tracks when she saw Hope on the mat, practicing with a staff. She wanted to leave before Hope saw her, but it was too late.

“Yvette,” Hope said. Josie tried not to roll her eyes at the purposeful name mishap. She was absolutely certain Hope knew it by now, “I didn’t know you were a night crawler.”

“Sure you did, this is the second time we’ve seen each other out at a late hour,” Josie said, ignoring Hope’s purposeful butchering of her name, “Are you sober this time?” Hope blushed.

“I didn’t think you noticed. Dad was not happy about that one.”

“Hey, it’s all good. These days were supposed to be all ours, right?” Josie asked, pulling one of the arrows out of the quiver, and examined it, “We can do whatever we want.”

“What do you plan on doing with that?” Hope asked, staring at the arrow.

“Not sure yet,” Josie said, “I could stab you with it. I bet the Capitol would love that, right?”

“Not as much as they’d love me putting this knife through your heart,” Hope said, getting closer. She abandoned her staff, and clicked a knife out of its sheath, putting the blade dangerously close to Josie’s chin. She gulped, not liking where the knife was, but loving where Hope was.  _ Dammit Josie, not what you should be thinking about! _ Hope placed an arm on Josie’s shoulder and said, “If you weren’t careful enough, I could snap your neck in a second.” 

“Oh yeah?” Josie asked, “Is that how you plan on taking me out?” A smile curled onto Hope’s face, and while Josie expected it to make her sick, it just turned her on even more. Her whole body felt tingly. She’d never felt like this before, it was so weird! She needed it to stop, but she didn’t want it to just yet. 

“Don’t worry,” she said, “I have plenty of plans for you.” She broke away from Josie, allowing the other girl to finally take a breath, “I watched your interview by the way. You might get a lot of sponsors. Not as many as me of course, but a reasonable amount.” 

“Thanks?” Josie asked, not sure how she was supposed to answer that.

“I watched your friend’s too,” she said, “We all did. And we found what he said very interesting.” Josie knew she was trying to rile her up, so she refused to let it bother her.

“So? People have crushes. Have you never had one?” Josie asked. She decided to put her time to good use, and placed an arrow in the bow. She pulled back, and fired at the target, hitting it in the chest.

“I’ve had...one,” Hope said in almost a whisper, like she didn’t want Josie to hear. Josie wasn’t sure why she was being so secretive, it’s not like she cared for whatever District 2 Career Boy Hope had liked once. Though it was probably Roman. Maybe Hope didn’t want Josie to know in fear that it would make her sound weak.

“Then you know,” Josie said, firing again, “I don’t feel the same, that’s all that matters.”

“You don’t?” Hope asked, “Not at all?”

“No,” Josie said, “Landon is a nice guy, and he’s...sweet. His Mom owns a bakery, and when they burnt the bread, he’d let me have some. It wasn’t much, but it was something.”

“Was food hard to come by for you?” Hope asked. Josie nodded and said, 

“We can’t all have victors for Fathers who spoil us in riches.” Hope scoffed and said,

“Now that’s hardly fair. I didn’t ask for my Father’s success, some of us are just luckier than others. And besides, you’re luckier than me in some aspects. Training for a match to the death isn’t exactly a normal childhood.”

“At least you’ll have a chance,” Josie said, “I won’t make it an hour, remember?” Hope looked down, seeming almost humiliated at her own words.

“You scored an 11 at the evaluations,” Hope said, “Even my Father only scored a 10.”

“Good on me, then,” Josie said, quoting Landon. 

“You might make it to the end,” Hope said, “But you aren’t going to beat me. I’m sorry, but you don’t have the skills to match me.”

“I had them yesterday,” Josie said.

“You won because I let you,” Hope said, but Josie knew she was lying. She wasn't making eye contact. Liars either looked away, or looked right at someone without breaking a sweat. There was no in between, “That won’t happen in the arena. If I see you, I’ll know what to do.”

“I’m sure you will,” Josie said. Hope clicked the knife back into its sheath and placed it back where she’d taken it from.

“I’m going to bed,” Hope said, “I’ll see you in the arena.”

“I sure hope you won’t,” Josie said to Hope’s retreating figure. The girl paused, almost as if she was going to turn around, but instead continued to walk, leaving Josie scared to say the least, so she was left with a lot of confusion as she realized deep down, she felt the tiniest amount of lust.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you guys liked this one! Next chapter starts the games...


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: Now that the games are starting, the archive warnings will really start to come into play

When Josie woke the next morning, she was sweating. She’d never felt this nervous before, and she probably never would again, given that her life would probably end in the first few seconds of the games. She still managed to pull herself out of bed, and into the black shirt and green cargo pants Dorian had left for her last night. She went into the living room, and was immediately ushered out by two Peacekeepers, and she was walked to a plane.

“Where’s the boy from my District?” she asked as they walked towards the ominous looking vehicle, but they didn’t answer her. She was just walked up the ramp, and instructed to take a seat. It wasn’t until she was sitting that she saw Landon on the other side, next to Milton, whose leg was shaking way too fast. A Peacekeeper came up to her and said,

“Hold out your arm.”

“Why?” Josie asked. Hope let out a small chuckle from where she was sitting across from Josie, and Josie glared at her. The Peacekeeper didn’t seem to be in a good mood, because he just grabbed Josie’s arm and stuck her with a needle, injecting her with something. He left, and Sebastian went,

“It’s a tracker.” 

“Oh,” Josie said, then added, “Thanks.” Sebastian gave her a small nod, and the ramp to the plane soon closed. Josie must have been the last one on. The plane took them to an undisclosed location, then when they got off, they were taken to meet their stylists. Dorian gave Josie a long hug when they met up, before going to do her hair. He took it out of the ponytail Josie had put it in, and put it in one braid down her back. He then took a jacket from a hook and put it over Josie’s shirt. As he smoothed it down, he took the time to pin something on the left side. Josie looked down and saw the golden mockingjay pin. She hadn’t seen it since the Reaping.

“You know, I’m not supposed to bet, but if I could, it would be on you,” Dorian said endearingly before helping Josie into the capsule.

“10 seconds to launch,” the automated voice said.

“Thank you, Dorian,” Josie said, giving him one last hug. An alarm beeped, so they quickly separated just as the capsule shut. It was official, she was never coming back. The capsule platform slowly began to ascend, and Josie watched as Dorian slowly went out of view. She was in the dark for a bit until the capsule came up, and she was in the arena. All the tributes had their feet planted, and many of them were looking at the giant Cornucopia in the middle. All the food and supplies were in there. Josie looked around and saw Hope nearly right across from her. There was nothing but malice in her eyes, which were trained on the wall of knives on the Cornucopia wall. Josie hated herself for this, but she still found her really attractive.  _ Focus! _ She told herself. 

She looked around, and saw Landon a few tributes down, next to Alyssa from District 4. He was one of the only few not looking at the goods in Cornucopia, but rather the woods around it. Josie had her eyes set on that bow, as did Maya. Landon seemed to notice Josie looking at the bow, because he started to shake his head. But what was Josie supposed to do? That bow was her best chance of survival! But she knew Maya would get it. She would have the entire Career pack backing her up. Josie looked up at the Cornucopia and saw that the time had gotten to ten seconds. Nine, eight, seven...this was really happening. Four, three, two, one. A giant horn sounded, and the tributes jumped from their pedestals, Josie included.

The Careers made themselves known almost right away. Roman made it to the Cornucopia, and had already stabbed a boy. Maya had made it to the bow, while also getting to a knife, and was in the process of stabbing one of the girls to death with it. And after they were done, loud cannon shots echoed through the arena. Josie tuned them out by looking for Landon, and saw him at the side, running as fast as he could into the woods. Josie decided it was best to follow, and was about to when she saw an abandoned backpack in the field. She knew it was dumb considering the Careers were on a murdering spree, but she had to try. She ran for it and scooped it up, not noticing the boy coming towards her with an axe. Just as he was about to swing, a knife went through his chest and he fell. Josie looked up and saw Hope staring her down.

_ I’ll know what to do _ , that’s what Hope had said. Josie grabbed the knife from the boys back and pulled it out to defend herself, except Hope didn’t come. She looked Josie right in the eye, then turned and went back to Roman.  _ Had she just let her live? _ Josie decided not to waste time questioning a good thing, and took the knife and the backpack with her into the woods. She was keeping a steady pace while running until she crashed into somebody. She and the tribute fell, and Josie found herself looking at Penelope Park. She kept her knife stretched just in case, but the girl just got up and kept running, not bothering to take care of Josie. Two minutes in and two girls had already let her live. Weird.

A few hours had passed since the start of the games, and Josie had spent her time walking as far away from the other tributes as possible. She eventually found a place to sit, and she looked through the backpack. There was a rope, an empty water bottle, and a slinky. Great, she’d risked her life for nearly nothing. At least she had the knife. Though it was covered with blood, which was really gross. Not wanting to look at it anymore, Josie stuck the knife in her inner jacket pocket, then went to find a place to sleep. She’d settled on climbing up a tree to sleep, and secured herself in with the rope from the backpack. She was resting against the cold bark, wishing that the canteen had had water in it, when an announcement came over the sky. A message that said “The Fallen” came up, along with hologram pictures of the fallen tributes. She counted 11. First night of the games and it was nearly halfway over. Josie felt bad about the fact that she hadn’t learned a lot of their names. Hope and Landon weren’t on the screen, and that eased her nerves, thought she was left wondering that if for some reason it came down to just Hope and Landon, would she want Landon to win for their district, or would she want Hope to come through?

Josie had fallen into a somewhat okay sleep, when she heard the sound of something...burning. Had someone started a fire? Stefan had told them not to do that! She opened her eyes, but she didn’t see the smoke in the air that signaled a fire. Instead, she was given a true fright when the woods in front of her burst into flames. Moving as fast as she could, she untied herself from the tree, packed all her stuff, and jumped down. Her landing wasn’t graceful, but she was able to pull herself up and start running. The flames were licking at the trees around her, so she picked up the pace. Unfortunately, she ended up tripping over a branch, and her leg got seared by the flames, making her scream. She’d never felt pain that bad before! She scrambled up and continued to run. She was getting weaker, but she had to make it out. She wasn’t going to die on the first day. She made it to a tree, and climbed up as quickly as she could. 

The fire had started to die out, so she figured she’d be safe. She laid back against the bark, and allowed herself to breathe, but it was hard with the pain coming from her leg. She checked on the wound, and let out a moan of pain as she attempted to touch it. This was bad. It was totally going to get infected, and then Josie would die a slow and painful death on live TV. Hopefully one of the tributes would get to her before that happened. As she writhed in pain and struggled to get comfortable in the tree, she stiffened when she heard a loud scream cut through the air. Another cannon shouted, and Josie watched as the sky displayed a message that the girl from 8 had passed away. Thirteen down, eleven to go. Josie looked at the direction of the scream, and saw the remains of smoke from a fire. Rookie mistake. 

After the cannon, Josie was met with the very unpleasant sound of Roman Sienna’s voice. She turned from her spot on the tree, and she saw him laughing with Maya. Jed and Hope were behind them, and Josie froze when she noticed a fifth person in their group.

“Hey, lover boy,” Roman said to him, “Are you sure you saw her?”

“Yes,” Landon said, “She went this way, I saw her.”  _ Traitor! _ How was it that Landon was helping the Careers try to catch her, while Hope had saved her life? Nothing in this damn arena made sense! The Careers started to laugh over the girl they’d just killed.

“Please don’t kill me!” Maya squealed in a mockery of the girl, “God, she was so pathetic, it made me almost feel bad.” Josie knew her top thought should have been anger about them making fun of the poor girl they’d just murdered, but instead she was angry at the fact that Maya had the bow. She needed to get her hands on that thing!

“For real?” Jed asked.

“Hey, I said almost,” she said. Josie switched her attention from them to Hope, who was trying to push Roman’s arm off of her. The boy looked like he was suffocating her.

“So how did you lose the girl from 12 earlier?” he asked.  _ Lose her. She let her go! _ Hope shrugged and said,

“She’s fast on her feet, she got away. I won’t let it happen again.” She finally pushed Roman away and said, “Let’s make camp here. We can alternate shifts and look in the morning.”  _ Crap. _ Josie needed to get out of there. She was plotting her escape when Landon said,

“Not here. Let’s go somewhere a bit more secluded, and closer to a water source.”  _ Thank God. _ The others agreed with him, and as they walked away, she heard Maya whisper to Jed,

“Why can’t we just kill him already?” Josie knew she was talking about Landon.

“We will,” Jed said, “We just need his help getting to his little girlfriend. Once she’s off the map, we’ll get rid of the District 2 showoffs, then we’ll win this for our district.” Maya nodded in agreement, and the two of them followed the rest of the Careers into the woods. Josie gulped, and the feeling of pain was overcome with the fear that the only person the Careers saw between them and victory was her. And they had Landon on their side, who planned on leading them straight towards her.

After the first night, there hadn’t been any more cannon shots, which meant that everyone was okay, but also meant the games weren’t any closer to being done. When Josie woke up, she was extremely parched, so she untied herself from the tree and went out to search for water. She kept her footsteps quiet as she moved through the arena, eyes alert for any tributes who could jump out at her. However, after a while her steps became staggered due to the burn from last night, and the pain was starting to cloud her eyes. She was nowhere near as alert as she wanted to be. She was about to give up and find another tree to rest in, when she heard a small trickle. She picked up her pace, and half-walked, half-limped to the source. She could have screamed in delight as she saw the stream of water. She slid down the rocks and got in the water, allowing the cold water to seep over her burn. It stung at first, then started to soothe the burnt skin. She was cupping the water in her hands and drinking it when she heard the same horrifying laughter from yesterday.

“We see you, twelve!” Roman shouted once the laughing stopped. Josie turned and saw the Careers and Landon standing by the top of the rock.

“Go get her!” Jed shouted at Maya, who broke into a run to get to her. Josie quickly moved out of the water and ran out, wincing as the pain returned to her leg. She kept running, trying her best not to hobble, then made it to a tree. She climbed up, and watched with terror as the Careers got to her.

“Get her, Roman!” Hope goaded the boy. She had a ravenous hunger in her eyes, and it was extremely unsettling. Roman moved to climb the tree, and just when Josie thought it was over for her, she realized that Roman was having some difficulty. Could he not do it?

“Roman, hurry up,” Jed said.

“I’m trying,” the boy grunted.  _ Well clearly not hard enough _ , Josie thought, stifling a laugh. Maya got tired of waiting, so she fired an arrow at Josie that she was easily able to dodge. She wondered how Maya had gotten a score of 9 with aim like that. Maybe Careers just had a certain pull.

“Roman, what’s taking so long?” Hope asked her District mate crossly.

“My hands keep slipping,” the boy said. Josie laughed and said,

“Why don’t you just throw the sword up?” That earned her a glare from all the Careers, “Do you need some help, Roman? I have a rope.” She pulled the rope out of her bag and rubbed it in their faces mockingly, “No? Alright then.”

“Screw you, Saltzman!” Hope shouted at her. Josie wanted to expose her in front of the other Careers right then and there, but chose not to on the account that Roman seemed mad, and she couldn’t have him doing anything to her. She had the feeling if Roman knew what Hope had done for her, he wouldn’t be in a forgiving mood.

“She can’t stay up there forever,” Landon said to the angry Roman, “Let’s just set up camp around the tree. We’ll get her when she gets down.” 

“Fine,” Roman said after a few seconds of thinking, “But if we lose her, it’s your head.” Landon put his hands up in surrender, then left with Jed to get some firewood. Josie guessed they had a good enough defense system in case another tribute came for them. From her spot on the tree, she glared at them. She was angry. They’d gotten to her before she’d been able to fill her canteen with more water, and she really needed more. Plus, the burn on her leg was getting worse. Any chance she had to outrun the guys on the ground rested with her leg getting better. But she didn’t have medicine, or herbs to make it. She was so screwed.

That night as the Careers took shifts sleeping below her, Josie heard the clink of something hitting the tree branch. It alerted Hope for half a second, but when she didn’t see anything around her, she just went back to sleep, while Roman continued to keep watch. Josie looked at what had fallen, and realized that it was a small grey container connected to a parachute. She opened it up and saw a small tin with a message on top of it inside.

“ _ Apply generously and stay alive _ ,” it read.  _ From Stefan. _ Josie allowed herself to smile at the fact that she’d gotten her first sponsors. She quietly opened the tin, and applied a big amount of the gunk on her burn. It stung at first, but after a while, it started to cool the wound.  _ That feels good, _ she thought. The pain stopped for a bit, and she was finally able to fall asleep.

In the morning, Josie was woken up by a faint buzzing. She opened her eyes and saw a large nest on the tree branch opposite her. What were those, wasps? It didn’t look like a wasps nest though, those were usually a lot smaller. It looked more like a beehive, only the insects flying around it looked too lithe to be bees. As Josie untied her rope so she could check it out, she realized that the pain from her leg she’d been feeling the past few days had vanished. She looked down and saw that the burn was mostly healed, save a nasty scar.

“Nice,” she murmured to herself. She went to focus the attention back on the wasps, and nearly screamed when she saw the body of a boy dangling from the tree branch. A  _ live _ body. She refrained from screaming in fears of waking the Careers, and watched as the boy made eye contact with her. She recognized him as Milton, the boy from 11. Was he there to kill her? She liked Milton, so she would much rather him kill her than her kill him. She didn’t have to heart to do it. But instead of coming over to kill her, Milton instead pointed to the nest, then looked down to the Careers. He used his hand to do a motion of the nest falling onto all the Careers. Genius! She mouthed a “thank you” before pulling her bloodied knife out of her pocket. She slowly began to cut the branch, which was when she got a real view of what the bugs were. Not wasps or bees, but something much worse. Tracker jackers.

_ “If you ever come into contact with a tracker jacker nest, you remain as still as possible,” Caroline told a young Josie and Lizzie, who were going outside to play. _

_ “What’s a tracker jacker?” Lizzie asked. _

_ “It’s a very dangerous wasp,” Caroline said, “Just one sting could hurt you really badly, and more than one could…” she trailed off, but even at seven, both girls knew what she meant, “Just promise me you won’t go near one, okay?” _

_ “We promise, Mommy,” Lizzie said, the same time Josie asked, _

_ “How will we know what it looks like?” _

_ “It’ll be big and grey, and the tracker jackers will fly around it to protect it. If you get too close, stay still, but if not, run away, okay?” _

_ “Okay,” both girls said. _

_ “And no matter what, never  _ ever _ try to touch one.” _

Mom was probably watching this right now and wondering what the hell Josie was thinking, but if this was her only chance of survival, she had to take it. Hope may have spared her life at the Cornucopia, but there was no promise that she’d continue to do so. And Landon...well, Landon had made it clear where his loyalties lied. She had to do this. Josie continued to cut at the branch, doing her best to stop and remain calm when one of the agitated tracker jackers came her way.  _ Stay still, stay still _ . It left, and she continued cutting, though quickly froze as one flew her way. She looked down at the Careers, glad to see they were all still sleeping. She did think it was very unwise of them to not have someone on watch, but hey, it helped her. She continued to cut, and watched as Milton made himself scarce. That was probably a good idea. Josie had to lean forward now, and it was getting harder to stay still.

“Come on,” she grunted, cutting at the wood. It wasn’t moving fast enough, and she could see Jed starting to stir.  _ Come on come on come on! _ Josie sighed, and leaned forward, cutting faster. This agitated the tracker jackers, and she worried that she wasn’t getting out of this unscathed. However, right before the first one could get to her, Josie got through the branch, and watched with a mix of horror and pride as it broke, and the nest went sailing down on all the unsuspecting Careers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you guys are liking the games so far!


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Halloween lovelies! And happy birthday weekend to Danielle and Kaylee :)

_ Nine year old Josie was chasing Rafael through the streets of the Seam. He hadn’t been picked in his first Reaping yesterday, so they were celebrating with a game of tag. _

_ “Come and get me!” Rafael said as he jumped from a box. Ms. Gilbert was shaking her head at them from the Hob for disrupting her, but she was too nice to tell them to stop. Josie sped through the Hob, knocking over a spread of fabrics. _

_ “Josette Saltzman!” Ms.Gilbert scolded. _

_ “Sorry, gotta run,” Josie said. She ducked under the tables to run through them, and nearly caught up to Rafael, but he outsmarted her again by climbing up the walls, and hopping from concrete fence to fence. Darn him! _

_ “You’ll never get me!” Rafael said, laughing wildly. Josie shook her head. If she followed him, she’d never make it. So instead, she veered off their usual path, and went into the main road. She maneuvered through the coal miners coming back to work, and found herself gaining on Rafael fast, who was struggling a bit on the high roof. He’d eventually have to jump down, and Josie would be there to catch him when he did. She was keeping up a good pace when she suddenly tripped over the handles of a wheelbarrow carrying coal, and skidded down the road on her knees. She saw Rafael pause in his tracks. _

_ “Stay there, Josie!” he called, “I’m coming to get you.” Josie groaned as she tried to pull herself up, pain slicing through her knees. She was dusting herself off when she heard a horrific noise. She turned and saw one of the Peacekeeper cars on the road, baring down at her with big yellow lights. _

Josie had been nine and alone on that road that day, and it was still nowhere near as horrific as the sight of the tracker jacker nest exploding onto the ground. The screams from the Careers echoed through the arena, and since Rafael wasn’t about to come and push her out of the way if they got too close, Josie knew she had to get going. She jumped from the tree, cursing at herself as she realized she’d forgotten the rope. Too late to go back now. As she ran, she turned to give one last look at the Careers. Hope, Landon, Roman, and Jed had seemed to get away, but Maya hadn’t been so lucky. She was screaming and struggling to swat the tracker jackers away, but it was too much. Josie couldn’t bear to watch any longer, so she continued to run. She made it a minute before the loud cannon echoed through the air. 

“Shit!” Josie exclaimed.  _ Had she just killed Maya?! _ She looked back at the scene, and watched with horror as the tracker jackers all ascended into a giant hoard before vanishing completely in the air. The gamemakers must have been controlling them. Josie went back to the scene, and nearly threw up at the sight of Maya. Her face was near unrecognizable, and it was covered in welts from the stings. That had definitely not been an easy death.

“I’m so sorry,” Josie said. She could feel a tear running down her face, “I didn’t mean to.” Except the sad part was that she had. She’d dropped that nest with the intention of it killing the Careers. And now it had. Josie contemplated burying Maya, but she knew that would be a waste of time. Instead, her eyes went to the bow that was still in her hands, and the quiver that was around her body. She cursed the Capitol for making her think about the bow rather than the young girl’s life, but she’d promised Lizzie. She had to get home to her. She crouched down and reached for the bow, wincing as the fingers cracked under her hand. She managed to pry the bow out, then she took the quiver off of Maya, draping it over herself. 

“Not bad,” she murmured, looking at the bow in her hands. She looked back towards the tree she’d been sleeping on, and was upset to find her rope gone. She guessed she’d have to find another way to sleep tonight. She was heading away from the area when she heard a soft groan. Josie quickly pulled an arrow out, and slowly walked to the source of the sound.  _ Was it Milton? Had he gotten caught in the wasps? _ Josie continued to walk towards it, keeping her bow ready. A part of her was just saying “run,” but she was a nurse's daughter. She couldn’t just leave. She saw a boot sticking out of a bush, so she moved the leaves with her bow, and yelped at what she saw.

“Screw you, Saltzman,” Hope said wearily from where she was lying on the ground. Her arm was covered in stings from the tracker jackers, and there were some on her face too. If Josie left her there, she would be dead in a few hours, tops. Josie knew she should leave. She needed to get away from this place and the other Careers. Away from Hope. But instead, she probably did the one thing that was more stupid than messing with that tracker jacker nest. She picked Hope up, and swung her over her shoulder.

“I’m really going to regret this,” Josie said, but still didn’t let her go.

It had been four days since Maya’s death. So far, the only other tribute who’d died had been the boy from 10. Josie was glad Milton was okay. He’d saved her from the Careers with that plan, and she hoped she could thank him for that. Well, he’d saved her from most of them. Josie turned and saw Hope, who was breathing steadily as she slept. She looked a lot younger when she was asleep. You couldn’t see the malice in her eyes when they were closed. Josie checked on the leaves she’d placed on Hope’s arm. The stings were healing nicely, and she’d be able to get back on her feet soon. Josie wasn’t exactly sure if that was a good thing or not.

There was a crack a few feet away, and Josie stiffened, worried that it was the Careers, or even Landon. Josie hoped Roman hadn’t followed through with his promise to kill Landon if they hadn’t caught her, but if he was alive, Josie knew she wasn’t his favorite person right now. She braced herself, keeping her bow close, expecting to see a tribute, but instead saw a squirrel.  _ Lunch, _ she thought. She shot the animal when it came in sight, then created a small fire with the wood around her. In the light, it would hopefully be less conspicuous. She was almost finished roasting the squirrel when Hope’s eyes opened. She looked calm at first, then she immediately started to freak out when she saw that she was with Josie, rather than her Career pack.

“What the hell is this?” she asked. She sat up too fast, and Josie watched her gasp in pain as she clutched her arm.

“You got stung,” Josie said, “You’ll be healed soon though. Then you can go back and meet your fellow Career...people.”

“I’ll kill you for this,” Hope said, pulling her jacket open to reach for her knives. Only, there was nothing there but pockets.

“Oh, looking for these?” Josie asked, showing Hope the knives in her jacket, “Yeah, I didn’t trust you to not use them against me, so I had to take them. But I guess I could have trusted you, right? You didn’t kill me on the first day. Even though you said you would.”

“Shut up,” Hope growled, “There’s an audience watching.”

“Well if the game makers look down on mercy, then I guess we’re both screwed,” Josie said, “I don’t think they’ll much like the fact that I brought you here instead of letting you die, will they?”

“Why?” Hope asked, “You could have had a chance to make it home with me out of the way.” 

“I’ve been asking myself that question for the past few days,” Josie said, peeling a bit off of her squirrel, “I haven’t had much luck finding the answer, though.”

“You’ll be dead before you do,” Hope said, “I will get that knife from you. Or Roman will do it for me. Either way, this story doesn’t have a happy ending for you.”

“Maybe not,” Josie said, “But at least I’ll die a decent person.” 

“A decent person wouldn’t have dropped a nest of deadly hornets on a bunch of people who were sleeping,” Hope said, “I think your time has passed.”

“I guess so,” Josie said. They were silent for a bit until Hope asked,

“So, did the nest…”

“Maya is dead,” Josie said bluntly, “And the boy from 10 too. I’m not sure how he died though.” She’d heard his cannon late last night while getting water. She’d rushed back to Hope, worried that it was her, and had been glad to see her okay. Not that she planned on telling her that.

“So fourteen down,” Hope commented.

“And ten to go,” Josie finished for her. It was odd that her and Landon were alive while a Career tribute was dead. That usually never happened. Usually the District 12 tributes were killed off during the first two days. Besides Stefan, and apparently Damon too.

“Are you going to give me any food?” Hope asked, interrupting her thoughts, “If I’m to be your prisoner or whatever, I would like to have something to eat.” Josie tossed her the other half of the squirrel, and stifled a laugh at the look of distaste on Hope’s face.

“You don’t eat game that often, do you?” Josie asked.

“Nope. You miner trash really are something,” Hope said as she took a bite. Josie winced at the term. “Miner trash.” She’d heard it a few times throughout training, but Hope had never said it, so Josie had figured she was above such childness. But, she guessed not. She grabbed her water bottle from her backpack and unscrewed the cap. She poured some water in it and handed it to Hope.

“You should drink something,” she said, “You haven’t had water in days.” Josie had tried feeding her water, but Hope was kind of like a little kid when she was out. She would just whine and push Josie away. Josie got a small kick out of the fact that the entirety of Panem had been watching it, but it wasn’t big enough to ease her worry on what would happen next. Hope licked her dry lips before accepting the cap from Josie. She drank the water and asked,

“Where are we? In the arena I mean?”

“A bit away from where Maya’s body was,” Josie said, thinking about the giant hovercraft that had come for it moments after she’d died. Josie was glad she hadn’t wasted any time getting the bow, otherwise she could’ve lost it for good, “But not too far from water.”

“You’ve really scoped the area out, haven’t you?”

“Yeah,” Josie said, “What, you and Roman didn’t?”

“Roman is ruthless, just like me,” Hope said, “And another thing we have in common is that we don’t think before we act. I thought you were a person who did the opposite, but I guess I was wrong.”

“How do you gather that?”

“You obviously didn’t think this through,” Hope said, “If you cared about surviving, you would have kept me as far away from you as possible. When Roman finds me-”

“When? Who’s to say he’s even looking?” Hope scoffed, “No, I’m serious. In my opinion, he probably just left you there to get a competitor out of the way.”

“He wouldn’t do that to me,” Hope said, “He loves me.” Josie paused from where she’d been skinning her squirrel.  _ Love? _ “The two of us were going to get married.”

“Married?” Josie asked.  _ What kind of teenager thought about marriage? _ “I thought Careers planned to go into the games together. How could you both volunteer and still plan to get married?”

“I’m only seventeen,” Hope said, “In my District, you’re only supposed to volunteer when you’re eighteen and you officially graduate from the academy. I had a year left, but the girl who was supposed to go with Roman found out that her Mom was having another baby. She couldn’t leave her, so I volunteered to take her place. It put a dent in mine and Roman’s plans, but if it brought honor to our District, then who was I to say no?” Josie started to understand why Hope’s Mother had looked so horrified at the Reaping. She’d thought she’d get one more year with her.

“Don’t you worry that Roman would kill you if it ended up being just you and him?” Josie asked. Hope shrugged and said,

“No, I’m a much better shot than he is. Boys like him will always care about bravado, putting on a show. I don’t worry myself with things like that. That’s why I know I’ll win.”

“What if I killed you now?” Josie asked, “You’re still weak, you can hardly stand.”

“You won’t do that,” Hope said, “You may have had the guts to drop that nest on us, but to directly take the life of another…” she trailed off, took a second, then continued with, “That just takes a whole other toll on you.” She wondered if Hope was referring to the boy she’d knifed when she’d saved Josie’s life. If so, she didn’t elaborate. Plus, eleven people had died in the bloodbath, Hope must’ve taken out more than one. 

“If it came down to just me and you, then I would,” Josie said, even though she knew for sure she wouldn’t be able to. She expected Hope to make a witty remark, so she was given a shock when the other girl just shrugged and said,

“Maybe you would.” The rest of their afternoon was spent in silence. Josie changed Hope’s leaves, much to the other girl’s chagrin, she caught them another squirrel for dinner, then went to get water. She was a little nervous about leaving Hope, but there were no new cannons while she was gone, and she made it back to her okay. Hope had grown a little quiet throughout their time together, and was now only speaking to Josie to count the remaining tributes.

“There’s you and me, so that’s two,” she said.

“And the boy from my District. Plus Alyssa and Sebastian from four, so that’s five,” Josie added.

“Speaking of five, the girl from there is still alive,” Hope said, “Plus Jed and Roman. That’s eight. There are two more left.” 

“Milton and Kym from 11,” Josie said, leaving out that Milton had been the one who’d given her the idea to drop the nest.

“Interesting,” Hope said, “11 and 12 never make it this long.” Josie knew she was still upset that Maya was dead and Josie wasn’t. But, there was nothing they could do about it now, so why bother? 

“Maybe these games will surprise people,” Josie commented. Hope scoffed,

“Oh please, they say that kind of garbage every year.” Josie decided to knock Hope down a peg by asking her,

“Have you gotten any sponsors yet?” The girl got kind of quiet, “I got some. They gave me some cream for my burns after the fire.”

“Oh,” Hope said, “Lucky you.” Josie could tell she was offended by that, so she hid her smirk. By the time night came around, it got a lot colder. Josie wanted to make a fire, but that wasn’t wise. She could see Hope visibly shivering from where she was laying down. Josie noticed now that the tracker jackets had kind of ripped the sleeves of her jacket. She was probably freezing. Josie found herself taking off her own jacket, and as she draped it over the smaller girl, she knew one thing. She was a damn fool.

Josie was woken up only a few hours later, by the sound of Hope getting up. She turned to see Hope getting in a crouching position. She paled when she saw Hope’s knives back in her possession. Josie was hoping Hope would sleep well into the afternoon again and she’d get her jacket back before she woke up. Josie was pretty sure Hope was going to gut her for that joke about sponsors, so she was given a surprise when Hope saw her and put a finger to her lips.

“We’re not alone,” she whispered. Josie gave her a slow nod before sliding her jacket back on, and getting her bow and quiver ready. She was glad Hope hadn’t tried to take it from her. As they waited, she wondered how Hope could tell that they weren’t alone. It was dark, and Josie couldn’t really hear anything. She still readied her bow, though. Hope did not look happy.

“Who is it?” Josie whispered after a few more moments of waiting.

“The girl from Four,” Hope said, “Alyssa.” A moment passed, “I hope you remember training with that staff. Combat is her weapon of choice, and her odds of winning, 5-1.”

“Well what were yours?” Josie asked.

“3-1,” Hope said proudly. Rude, Josie’s had only been 10-1. She tensed next to Hope, fear going through her that this was a trick Hope was playing on her, but that fear quickly turned to horror as Alyssa Chang jumped out at them.

“Josie, go low,” Hope said, pulling a knife from her pocket. She launched at Alyssa head on, while Josie rolled on the ground and shot from behind. The arrow narrowly missed Alyssa and hit a tree.  _ Dammit! _ Alyssa’s weapon was a spear, and it was huge compared to Hope’s knife. Unless she wanted Alyssa to kill Hope, Josie would have to move fast. She put her bow to the side, and got Alyssa by her legs. 

She yanked her back, and Hope attempted to grab the spear, but Alyssa kept her footing, kicked Josie in the face, then pushed the spear towards her chest, but Hope moved quickly, and it ended up piercing her in the shoulder. As Hope cried out in pain, Josie grabbed her bow and hit Alyssa hard in the leg with it. 

She fell, and Josie quickly pulled the spear out of Hope’s shoulder. Alyssa checked her soon after, and she crashed to the ground. Hope had armed herself with the spear, and she and Alyssa were fighting, though Alyssa was strong enough to match her moves. Josie came in to help, but Alyssa was a lot better than her. She and Hope were too separate. They needed to work together. 

She gave Alyssa a kick to the back that sent her moving towards Hope. Hope used her good arm to wrap around Alyssa’s throat, pushing the spear against her throat. Josie then slid on the ground, grabbed her bow, and used it to knock Alyssa’s feet out from under her. She fell to the ground, and Hope aimed her spear back at her.

“Nice try.” As Josie went to get her arrow, she watched in horror as Alyssa reached for the spear. She was gonna use the same move Josie had in the training center..

“Hope!” Josie called. She grabbed the arrow and tossed it to the girl, right as Alyssa was pulling the spear down. Hope grabbed the arrow, and as Alyssa tried to pull her to the side, Hope slammed the arrow right into her throat. Josie nearly threw up as Alyssa started to gag. Her arms went to her side, and she convulsed for a bit until her body went still. The cannon fired soon after that.

“Fifteen down,” Hope said as she got to her feet. She kicked the body, and Josie winced as Alyssa’s head faced her, eyes devoid of life.

“Nine to go,” she croaked out. Hope opened her mouth to say something else, but she was cut off when she heard someone call,

“Hope!” Josie recognized the voice. Roman. Roman, who she’d dropped a tracker jacker nest on a few days ago. Roman who wanted her dead. “Hope, are you there?”

“I’m over here!” Hope called to the boy. Josie grabbed her backpack when Hope wasn’t looking, and was gone before the girl could turn around. She was halfway across the woods when she suddenly realized something. Hope had called her Josie.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was gonna end last chapter with Josie finding Hope, but I thought it worked better like this haha. Next chapter will be from Hope's POV. Also, would you guys like to see any at home/Capitol chapters?


	8. Chapter 8

Hope turned around and saw that Josie was gone.  _ Dammit! How did she keep losing her _ ? Roman broke through the trees, and Hope rolled her eyes as he struggled to find her.

“Over here, dumbass,” she said. Roman turned and said,

“Oh, there you are!” He walked over her and gave her a hug. She could see blood on his shirt. She wouldn’t be surprised if he’d been the one who’d killed the boy from 10. She didn’t judge him though, considering Alyssa’s body was a few feet away, oozing blood. Blood that was still all over her hands. Roman noticed it and asked, “Damn, did you take care of that yourself?”

“Yeah,” Hope lied, not willing to admit she’d had help from a District 12 Tribute, “Maya left one of her arrows around, and I kept it with me.”

“And may she rest in peace,” Jed said as he came in. Hope noticed that Landon wasn’t with him. She thought Jed had killed him, but Josie said the boy from her District was still alive. He must have snuck away after the tracker jackers.

“I’m sorry,” Hope said, “Were the two of you close?” Jed scoffed,   


“No, I didn’t even care about her.” But Josie could see a flash of pain in his eyes, and his grip on the spear in his hands grew stronger. He wanted revenge, she could tell. Revenge against the tribute from 12 who had almost effortlessly dropped murderous wasps on them. She hadn’t even gotten stung!

“We should get out of here,” Roman said, “We’ll make camp elsewhere, then we’ll find those two punks from 12, and slice their throats out.”

“Great,” Hope said, her voice void of emotion. Roman frowned at her, but didn’t question it. “Wait, I thought the boy from 12 was with you guys.”

“He  _ was _ ,” Roman said crossly, “But Jed let him get away!”

“We were surrounded by wasps!” Jed snapped at the other boy, “The hell was I supposed to do? I had other things to prioritize!”

“Whatever,” Roman said, “That little bitch won’t last long on his own. We’ll find him. It’s the girl that we need to get first.” 

“Yeah,” Jed said, “Are you sure you haven’t seen her?”

“If I had seen her,” Hope said, “She would already be dead.” It wasn’t the truth, but hey, it wasn’t like these two would ever have to know, “Let’s go, there could be more tributes hiding around here.” She led the group out of the woods right as the hovercraft came for Alyssa. May she rest in peace.

Hope was sharpening one of her knives when Roman came back from his hunting trip. He had a big rabbit slung over his shoulder, and Hope frowned when she saw that he wasn’t alone. The boy from 4 was behind him, holding a bunch of firewood.

“Put it over there,” Roman told him, gesturing to the giant pile in the middle. The boy nodded before running off. Roman came up to Hope and said, “Check this out, it’s nice and fat.”

“Awesome,” Hope said, “Why the hell is that kid still alive?”

“I’ll take care of him soon,” Roman said, “But for now, we need him. Just wait until you see what I’ve got planned.”

“You know, you’ve done a lot of planning. When are you actually going to  _ do _ something?” Hope asked. She was positive Roman hadn’t killed another tribute since the bloodbath.

“Patience sweetheart,” he said. Ugh, she hated when he called her sweetheart. Her Dad called her that, it was weird!, “All will be revealed soon.” He gave her a kiss on the cheek before walking away with the rabbit, and Hope wiped her cheek. Roman may have been able to make himself look scary to everyone else, but Hope was just annoyed by him. 

The girl he was supposed to go with, Jade, she was probably more willing to take his bullshit, but Hope wasn’t like that. She tried to focus her attention back on the knife, and away from Roman, but it was getting hard. She hoped Jed hadn’t seen the kiss. She didn’t want anyone to know they were together. It was bad enough Josie did. 

Hope didn’t know what it was about that girl from 12, but she’d felt comfortable enough to tell her. Not that she’d told Josie the whole truth, though. She’d thought she loved him once, but now that they were together here, she wasn’t so sure.

_ “Block with your hand,” Jade told her while sparring, “The way you’re going, you’ll be dead on the ground in a second.” _

_ “I’ve got it,” Hope grumbled. She tried again, but Jade caught her again before she could make a move. The older girl grabbed her arm and flipped her over. _

_ “Hope, if you ever want to graduate, you’re going to have to learn to do basic combat. No one is going to want you in the games if you can’t do this.” _

_ “I can do it,” Hope said, “Let’s try again.” She and Jade did three more rounds, Jade beating her at every one.  _ Dammit! _ Why was this so hard? _

_ “Maybe someone else should volunteer next year,” Jade murmured. Hope’s eyes widened, _

_ “No! Next year is the Quarter Quell, the biggest event of the year! I  _ have _ to be there!” _

_ “Then learn how to block correctly!” Jade snapped. Hope pulled herself to her feet, and cracked her neck, shaking her body out. _

_ “Go again,” she said. Jade came at her, and instead of doing a normal block, Hope went low, twisted on her heel, and knocked Jade out from the bottom. The girl fell on her back, and Hope said, _

_ “I don’t need to do things “correctly,” I just have to beat you.”  _

_ “That attitude could either save your life or get you in a world of trouble,” Jade said, “Come on, let me help you up.” Hope was considering letting her, but she was smarter than that. _

_ “Yeah right,” Hope said. Jade laughed, _

_ “You’re good, Mikaelson,” she said, “Maybe you’ll be ready next year.” Hope helped herself up and asked, _

_ “Are you and Roman ready for this year?” Jade nodded, _

_ “Yeah, I’m ahead in my training, he’s making strides. Plus I know he can’t wait to get back to his fiancee,” she added teasingly. _

_ “We only started dating a few weeks ago, Jade. We’re not getting married.” _

_ “Sure you are,” Jade said, “This kind of stuff always happens with Careers from different years. They both win their games, then they’ll live happily ever after.” _

_ “What if you win the games?” Jade laughed and said, _

_ “I’m good, Hope. Really good. But you and I both know Roman is better, and if it comes down to it, we know who’s making it out.” _

_ “But you can’t know for sure, right?” _

_ “Trust me,” Jade said, “I know.” Hope noticed a look of sadness cross over Jade’s face, and she wanted to ask her more, but they were interrupted when Roman came in. He was sweaty from training, but it didn’t stop him from wrapping his arm around Hope and giving her a kiss. _

_ “Hey babe,” he said, “What are you two talking about?” _

_ “How the Reaping is soon,” Jade said, “I’ve signed up for the tesserae every year. I might not even have to volunteer, isn’t that great?” _

_ “Hell yeah,” Roman said, “Hope, does your Dad know anything about what the arena is going to be like this year?” _

_ “Nope, not even the mentors get to know,” Hope said. _

_ “I just hope it’s not water,” Roman said, “I can’t swim to save my life.” _

_ “You’ll be fine in there, Roman,” Jade said, “Then when Hope goes in for the Quarter Quell, we’ll have a victor from our District two years in a row.”  _

_ “Damn right we will,” Roman said, and Hope frowned at Roman’s belief that Jade wasn’t going to make it. How could he have such little faith? _

_ “I need to get going,” Jade said, “Mom is making special dinners for me every day of the week, and I don’t want to miss one. I’ll see you two tomorrow.”  _

_ “Sure,” Roman said. _

_ “Bye Jade,” Hope murmured. _

Hope thought about Jade a lot. How she would never see her again...

“Hope! Come on, let’s eat,” Roman said, cutting into her thoughts.

“I’m coming,” she said. She placed her knife back in her jacket pocket, and went to join the others. She kept all her knives on the right side instead of spread out like before. The left side contained the arrow Josie had given her. The one she planned to use to slice Roman’s throat and win.

The next day, Roman showed Hope what he’d been planning. They’d set up camp around the Cornucopia, and Roman had created a whole mountain of supplies.

“Sebastian helped me with an intricate system of bombs to guard it,” Roman said, showing the lumps where the bombs were hidden to Hope, “I was gonna find someone from 3 to do it, but they’re both dead, so Sebastian offered if I kept him alive. And I will, for now.”

“This will be enough to keep us alive for the rest of the games,” Hope commented.

“Yep,” Roman said, “Well, one of us.”  _ Yeah, me _ , Hope thought, but didn’t say out loud. She’d get Roman, she just needed to wait for the right time. 

“Roman!” Jed called. Roman went to talk to him, and Hope heard him ask,

“Any luck finding Kirby?” Jed shook his head,

“I think he’s gone underground. Saltzman too. Those two are good. All the tributes have been keeping themselves hidden. I say we take out Sebastian now.”

“We can’t,” Roman said, “He’s the only one who knows how the traps work.”

“Then get him to tell you how they work, then kill him,” Jed said. Hope turned to look at Sebastian. He was holding a spear close to him while he guarded the stuff. Hope could probably kill him right now with no problem. She played with the knife in her arm, wondering if she should go for it. Why did they even need a guard? 

If they started killing people now, they’d be closer to getting the games done with. It would get down to her, Roman, and Jed, then she could kill them both, and get home. Simple as that, right? Wrong. 

Hope would be okay with being the one to take out Roman and Jed, but she knew deep down that she was not willing to be the one to take out Josie Saltzman. And that thought scared her more than any game ever could.

“Hope,” Roman said, “Jed and I are going to hunt. Watch Sebastian.”

“Why do I have to be the babysitter?” Hope asked crossly.

“You’re still injured, I don’t want to risk it.” Hope scoffed. She was fine! She’d taken down Alyssa like it was nothing. She got up from the rock she’d been sitting on and said,

“I can take care of myself.” She pulled her knife out of her pocket and pointed it towards Roman. The boy looked like he was about to laugh. Did he not take her seriously, “Get out of my way.”

“Or what?” he asked. Hope, getting fed up, threw the knife. It landed right in Sebastian’s thigh. He howled in pain, and Jed went to check on the boy. Roman glared at Hope, “What the hell?!”

“Stay out of my way, or your precious guard boy goes down.”

“What’s wrong with you? Don’t you want District 2 to win?”

“No, District 2 will win,” Hope told him, “On my terms, not yours.” Roman grabbed her jacket and yanked her closer to him.

“Listen to me, Mikaelson. You weren’t even supposed to be here, so don’t think for a second that I won’t-” He was cut off as Hope dug another one of her knives in his leg. He jumped away from her and Hope said,

“You touch me again, I’ll do a lot worse.”

“Screw you,” he growled. Hope pulled the knife out and said,

“If you’ll excuse me, I have lunch to hunt.” She put the knife back in her jacket and stormed off, not leaving Sebastian or Jed a chance to get a word in. While she was out, she used her knife to slice up a rabbit, then cooked it the same way Josie had, with minimal fire. It didn’t taste as good as Josie’s, but it was still pretty good. 

Hope wondered where she was now. A cannon hadn’t sounded for her, so she was alive somewhere, but where? Had she found Landon? Were they making an alliance and plotting Hope’s demise? Or was she alone, waiting for a new development? The games had been kind of slow recently. After finishing the rabbit, deciding not to save some for Roman-asshole-Hope returned back to her camp. Roman was brooding while Jed practiced with his spear, and Sebastian kept his watch. 

The four of them were silent for most of the day, and late that night while Hope tried to sleep, she noticed a parachute come down to her. She picked it up and opened it. It was some ointment for where she’d been speared. Roman hadn’t had any medicine with him, so Hope had been keeping it clean with leaves the way Josie had taught her. At first she thought her Dad had sent it, but then she saw the note.

_ Thanks for keeping her safe. -Stefan. _ A small smile spread across Hope’s face as she realized what the message referred to. 

She took her jacket off and moved her shirt out of the way so she could treat the hole in her shoulder. The medicine stung at first, but soon it started to soothe the pain a lot better than the leaves did. Hope smiled at the fact that she felt better, and that she finally had her first sponsor. She went to sleep soon after, allowing all of her thoughts to go straight to Josie.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you guys liked this Hope chapter. There will be more coming up, though the story will mostly stay with Josie. Next chapter will take a break from the games to show what's going on back home!


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A Lizzie/Stefan chapter for you all, takes place during chapters 7 and 8 :)

When Lizzie came inside after milking her goat, she saw her Mom rocking in her chair, praying. She’d been doing the same every day since Josie had gotten on the train. Lizzie placed the tin of milk on the table and crouched down next to her Mother,

“Mom?” she asked quietly, “Mom, we need to go to the square. If we don’t watch, they’ll get mad.” Her Mother didn’t acknowledge her presence in any way. She just continued to pray. The door opened wider, and Lizzie turned to see Rafael come in.

“How is she holding up?” he whispered. Lizzie walked over to him and said,

“Not well. How’s your Dad and Ms. Seylah?” 

“Dad’s drinking as usual. I’m going to be honest, I don’t even think he knows Landon is gone. And Ms. Seylah is doing her best, just like your Mom is.”

“You can’t do your best if you’re not actually going to try,” Lizzie said crossly, glaring at her Mother, “Josie even asked her to try and she just doesn’t!”

“Has she left the chair at all in the past few weeks?” Rafael asked quietly.

“Just to use the bathroom, or to eat the two bites she’s able to consume a day. She hasn’t said more than two words to me since Josie...since Josie left.” It still didn’t feel real that Josie was currently in the games, fighting for her life. And it was all Lizzie’s fault. She should have done something to stop her. She should have stopped her from volunteering, but the Capitol was strict. Once someone said they volunteered, there was no going back. The rule did nothing for Lizzie’s guilt, though.

“It’s not your fault, you know,” Rafael said, “There was nothing you could have done.”

“I should be the one in there, not her,” Lizzie said, “This isn’t right.”

“Yeah, it’s not. But sadly for us, there’s nothing we can do, right? Except go to the square and watch so the Peacekeepers don’t start a riot.”

“Oh now you wanna watch?” Lizzie asked. Rafael hadn’t shown at the beginning of the games with the rest of the District. He’d gotten pretty quiet after the interviews. All he knew was that Josie had made it through the first night. Though now she was stuck up a tree, and Lizzie was extremely worried that her time wouldn’t last much longer. Mom probably was too. But Lizzie was trying. She milked her goat, she fed her cat, Buttercup. Mom could at least get off of her chair. 

“Hey, I meant to be there when it started, I was just busy,” Rafael said.

“Thinking about the interview?” Lizzie asked. He shrugged, “Did what Landon say…”   


“I just didn’t know he felt that way about her, that’s all,” Rafael said in a clipped tone. He then sighed and said, “Landon and I, we used to be a lot closer, you know? I guess I’m just wondering why he never told me.”

“Really?” Lizzie asked, “He just probably thought that you liked her.”

“Huh?” Rafael asked. 

“I mean, I did too if we’re being honest-”

“Lizzie! Why did both of you think that?”

“Because you spend almost all your time with her, you’ve always been protective, and you told her that she would be the one to make it back even though  _ your _ brother is also in there.”

“Whatever,” Rafael said, and Lizzie could tell with how fast he was changing the subject that she’d been onto something, “We need to get into the square. The Peacekeepers and driving through town. We can’t let them catch us. Wait here, I’ll get your Mom.” He quickly walked away, and Lizzie gave a small smirk as she realized she was right. Buttercup came out of hiding from the kitchen cabinet and purred as he pressed against her leg.

“Hey sweetie,” Lizzie said, taking the cat in her arms, “Do you miss Josie too?” He just purred, “Oh who am I kidding, you two hated each other, right?” She stroked the cat and said, “I really miss her, though. But, she’ll be back soon, and the two of you can go back to hissing at each other from afar.”

“Josie’s cooking that cat when she comes back, and we both know it,” Caroline said, interrupting Lizzie’s conversation, “Should we get going?”

“Sure,” Lizzie said, hoping Rafael wasn’t bothered by both her and her Mom saying Josie would come back. Then again, how bothered could he be? He’d said the same thing. What Lizzie was really curious about was how he’d gotten her Mom out of the chair.

“I just explained that she promised Josie she’d be there for you,” he whispered to her as Caroline slid her shoes on, “There wasn’t much room left for argument after that.”

“I guess not,” Lizzie said. She placed Buttercup in the living room, and the three of them left the house, walking in silence. Some neighbors offered condolences, while others actively turned to avoid them. It was just how people acted around the family of tributes. Not sure what to say. The only person who looked like they wanted to talk to them was Ms. Gilbert, Josie’s buyer from the Hob.

“Hey Caroline,” she said to her Mother, “How are you holding up?”

“I’m fine,” Caroline said curtly, “Josie will be okay, I know it.” Rafael remained quiet, and Lizzie couldn’t tell if it was because he was hurt, or because he agreed with her.

“Of course,” Ms. Gilbert said, “Are you off to watch?”

“Well why else would I be out here?” Ms. Gilbert took the hint and said,

“Be well, Caroline. We’re all praying.” She walked off, and Lizzie didn’t miss it when her Mother rolled her eyes at the woman.

“What was that about?” she asked.

“Nothing. Let’s go,” Caroline said. She picked up the pace towards the square, and Lizzie and Rafael had to run to keep up with her. When they made it to the square, the screen showed Josie asleep in a tree. Good, she’d made it through the night. But the Careers were under her, along with Landon. Lizzie couldn’t believe Landon had betrayed her sister like that. She’d tried talking to Rafael about it, but that had ended up with him not talking to her for hours. They were better now, but still some silence. Like right now, where the older boy refused to look at her.

“See Mom, she’s okay,” Lizzie whispered to the woman, who was tensing up. She then looked at Rafael and said, “They both are.” Neither of them answered her. She focused her attention back to the screen, where Josie was just waking up. She watched her sister check her surroundings, before making eye contact with someone else in the trees. It was a boy with incredibly curly hair. Lizzie recognized him from the interviews as the boy from 11. He was pointing to something, and Lizzie didn’t even realize what it was until the camera panned in. She gasped, putting a hand to her mouth.

“Tracker jackers,” she heard Caroline murmur. There were a lot of gasps throughout the crowd as Josie crawled towards the nest, pulling a knife from her jacket pocket.

“What the hell is she doing?!” Caroline exclaimed, showing more emotion than she had over the past week. Josie stuck the knife into the branch and started to cut, making small incisions to the thick branch. At that rate, it would take hours.

“Dammit Jo,” Rafael murmured, “Don’t do it.” Lizzie understood his anxiety. Landon was on the ground, and that nest would fall on him as well. Lizzie took his hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. It wasn’t much, but comfort, right? He squeezed back, just the same. Josie had picked up the pace with the tree, freezing up anytime one flew near her, just like Mom had taught them years ago. But she couldn’t stay still forever. She would eventually need to continue cutting. Rafael and Mom were tensing up next to her, and she wasn’t sure who was more anxious.

“Please get out of there, baby,” Caroline said, a tear falling from her eye.

“Please Jo, don’t,” Rafael whispered. Lizzie hoped Josie would abandon this idea. She hoped she would take advantage of the sleeping Careers and run. But she didn’t. She continued to cut faster and faster, and right as it seemed like the wasps were coming to sting her, the nest fell. What happened next felt like slow motion. The boy from 11 was long gone, so it was just Josie in the tree, and the Careers on the ground. Lizzie held her breath the whole time the nest fell, noticing nothing else except the fact that Rafael’s hand was no longer entwined with her own. 

When the nest landed on the ground, absolute chaos followed. The Careers woke up screaming. The girl from 1 with the bow was completely overwhelmed by the ravenous wasps. Luckily for all of them, both Josie and Landon were able to get away, though Landon suffered a few stings. He was doing a lot better than the girl from 1 who was now on the ground screaming. The young children were shielding their eyes, some of them crying. 

Mothers were holding their children close, and taking them out of the square. A lot of them didn’t need to see this. Younger kids got that luxury. Children old enough to be Reaped didn’t. Lizzie stood there, watching with a stone face as the wasps ripped that girl apart. Soon her screaming stopped, and a cannon shot rang through the arena. She felt her Mom shudder next to her as she held in a sob. 

“Screw this,” Rafael said. He angrily turned away. Lizzie quickly followed him through the square, grabbing him before he could leave.

“Hey, we can’t go,” she told him.

“Let go of me, Lizzie!” he snapped at her. There was a new kind of malice in his eyes that she’d never seen before. Not because it was a mean look, but because of all the pain that was with it.

“Raf, I’m sorry. But Landon...only one cannon rang out. Landon is okay.” Rafael shook his head, keeping his gaze away from Lizzie. It was then the girl realized that he was crying. He was crying, and he didn’t want her to see.

“You don’t need to hide from me,” Lizzie said, “Please?” She placed a gentle hand on his shoulder, turning him around to face her. She wiped a tear from his face, and he took her hand, slowly moving it down.

“She said she would protect him,” Rafael said, “She promised that if she saw him, she’d protect him,” Rafael said, his voice breaking. Lizzie nodded,

“I know Raf, I know.”

“He’s my brother, Lizzie,” he said, “ _ My _ brother.” She didn’t know what else to do but to hug him, so that’s what she did, allowing him to cry into her shoulder. From her viewpoint, she could see Josie pick up one of the Careers and sling her over her shoulder. 

“Oh Josie,” she whispered, “What the hell are you getting yourself into?”

Klaus Mikaelson was in a rage. In Stefan’s ten years of knowing the man, he’d never seen him like this. He was storming the room, his footsteps sounding like those of a giant as he ranted on the phone to his wife back home.

“She’s making an absolute fool of herself, Hayley,” he was saying into the phone, “Absolutely everything I’ve taught her has gone out the window. And it’s all because of that nasty girl from twelve.”

“You need to say something,” Katherine murmured.

“Like what?”

“How about to stop publicly tarnishing Josette. She’s going to need sponsors. No one wants to sponsor a ‘nasty girl’ now do they?”

“Guess not,” Stefan said. He took another sip of his drink and said, “I’ll be back.” He pushed away from the table and went to the angry Mikaelson. He snatched the phone, gave Hayley a goodbye, then slammed it back in the console.

“You have no right to-”

“No you have no right,” Stefan said, shoving the older man back, “Your daughter is in that arena fighting for her life. Maybe you should spend your energy taking care of her, instead of ranting to your wife about what she’s doing wrong.” 

“You have no business telling me how I should parent  _ my _ daughter, Mr. Salvatore.”

“Keep this up, you soon won’t  _ have _ a daughter to parent,” Stefan said. It was cruel, but he needed to get his point across. Klaus remained silent, “She’s in that arena, and she’s hurt. She needs you.” Those tracker jacker stings were fatal, and Hope had been stung by more than one. Josie was doing her best to take care of her, but she’d been out of it for days, and Stefan knew Klaus had the ability to get sponsors for her, so why wasn’t he doing that.

“What my daughter needs is a dose of common sense,” Klaus said, “If she’d done what she was thought and killed Miss Saltzman on the first day, then she wouldn’t be in this predicament.” 

“Your daughter isn’t like you,” Stefan said, “She actually has the ability to care about others.”

“Oh I care about others,” Klaus said, “My daughter especially, which is why I trained her in how to win these games. But if she’s going to ignore everything I taught her, then I won’t just stand here and offer my assistance. She doesn’t deserve it, and I don’t owe it to her.”

“She’s your daughter,” Stefan said, “You owe her everything.”

“Do you have children, Mr. Salvatore?”

“No I do not.”

“Then don’t tell me what I owe her,” Klaus said, “You’ve wasted enough of my time today. My advice to you is to look out for your own tributes. Your boy is all on his own now. My guess is he’s not got much longer. And as for Miss Saltzman...Miss Saltzman is in over her head. She should watch her back.” He turned to leave, but Stefan stopped him by saying,

“Are you saying that to make me worried for Josie, or are you saying that because you’re scared? Scared that Josie might be the one to make it out.” Klaus paused. His stance grew less regal, and more relaxed. He turned around slowly.

“I love my daughter Mr. Salvatore,” he said, “Just know that.” With that, he turned around and continued to walk away, slamming the door behind him as he did. Stefan drank heavily for the rest of the day, paying little to no attention to the games. Landon and Josie were fine, that was all he needed to know. But Katherine was worried, and Katherine worrying was never good.

“It’s been days with no change,” Katherine said, “No other tribute has died since Maya. If they don’t start killing, the Capitol will get angry.”

“Well, back in my time, they would always cause the biggest scene through a natural disaster. Earthquake, fire, tornado.”

“Oh dear,” Katherine said, “How much longer until that, do you think?”

“It’s been a few days, so not much,” Stefan said, “No one wants to watch a bunch of kids sit around, right? No, if the kids won’t do anything, then the Capitol will.” Luckily or unluckily for them, Stefan wasn’t sure which, the boy from 10 died that night. Speared by Alyssa, the girl from 4, who was now hunting for other tributes, and getting dangerously close to the area where Josie was healing a wounded Hope. 

She didn’t find them that night, but Stefan knew their time was running out. Alyssa didn’t find them the next day, and the one after, Hope woke up. It made Stefan nervous. He didn’t think Josie would kill Hope, but he couldn’t speak for the other girl.

To his surprise, nobody killed anybody. In fact, the girls just talked. He was honestly pretty uninterested until Hope brought up her age.

“I’m only seventeen,” she said to Josie, and that was when Stefan realized why Klaus was angrier than usual. No Career tribute went to the games at seventeen. Not when there was someone else. Stefan got up from the chair and went down to the lobby, where a bunch of sponsors were watching with the mentors. He spotted Klaus, sitting alone by the window. Stefan cautiously walked over and asked,

“Can we talk?”

“Come to criticize my parenting again, Mr. Salvatore?” he asked. 

“I thought we could have a drink,” Stefan said, raising the bottle in his hands. Klaus gave him a small nod, and gestured to the seat across from him. Stefan poured the whiskey in two glasses and asked, “Have you been watching?”

“Not recently,” Klaus said, swirling his drink, “My daughter is safe, that’s all that matters.”

“No thanks to you,” Stefan observed, “Have you thought any more of what I said?”

“I thought we were past that,” he said.

“I’m not criticizing, I’m just asking,” Stefan said, “The girl from 4, Alyssa...she’s on a warpath. She just killed the boy from 10. If she gets to Hope and Josie-”

“Josie?” Klaus asked.

“Josette,” Stefan said, “My tribute.”

“You’re on a nickname basis, now?” Klaus asked, “I thought you usually liked to distance yourself from your poor tributes.”

“I thought I’d give my ‘poor tributes’ a chance,” Stefan said, “Besides, that isn’t what’s important. Hope is in trouble. The girl from 4 is close to finding her. She’s still injured from the stings, what if she’s unable to fight her?” For nearly a second, he saw a flash of panic cloud Klaus’s eyes, but it was gone nearly as fast as it came.

“Well if she’s already on her way, then there’s nothing I can do now, is it? These sponsorship packages do take a while, you see.” 

“You could at least try,” Stefan said. Klaus just shrugged, taking another sip, “I saw what she said just now. How she wasn’t supposed to go this year. My guess is that she didn’t consult you about that choice, did she?” Klaus paused, his movement of bringing the glass back to his lips stopping, “I’m guessing that means I’m right.”

“You might be,” Klaus grumbled.

“You must not like when things don’t go your way, do you?” Stefan asked. Klaus looked up at Stefan, a smirk spreading across his face.

“I don’t worry about that, things always go my way. I won my Hunger Games, I married the love of my life, I had a beautiful daughter. You can’t say the same though, can you? Your brother was murdered by my hand, your Mother was too distraught to even handle it when you were chosen, and now you live your life alone, with no one to go home to.” His voice was cruel, yet calculated. Hope had sounded just like him when talking to Josie after the parade. The apple clearly didn’t fall far. 

“Alright, we’re done here,” Stefan said, pulling away from the table.

“Oh good,” Klaus said, his smirk only getting bigger.

“You know, you and your daughter are wrong about Josie,” Stefan said, “She’s going to make it out of the arena, I’m sure of it.”

“In your dreams,” Klaus said. Stefan shook his head and kept his head high on his way out of the room. Klaus Mikaelson didn’t get to see him falter.

Alyssa Chang made it to Josie and Hope that night. Both girls had been sleeping, and it made Stefan nervous, and the nerves only worsened when Hope had woken up first. Josie, for whatever reason, had given her jacket to Hope as a blanket. A jacket with all the confiscated knives. 

Hope looked disoriented as she woke up, but once she gathered her surroundings, she immediately took the knives out of Josie’s jacket and put them back in her own. Stefan knew her next move. She’d slit Josie’s throat with one of them, then get moving. She raised her knife over Josie’s body, and Stefan closed his eyes. He didn’t want to see this.

However, the younger Mikaelson didn’t finish the act. Instead, she lowered the knife and crouched down, keeping herself out of sight from the girl from 4. She’d noticed her. And at this moment, it seemed that Hope saw killing her as more important than killing Josie. Stefan let out a sigh of relief as Josie woke up soon after, and was immediately shushed by Hope. 

By the time Alyssa did come out at the girls, they were ready for her. They matched her moves pretty well, until Hope took a bad stab wound to the shoulder. However, Josie helped her out, and it wasn’t long until Hope was sticking one of Josie’s arrows into Alyssa’s neck. The cannon rang out soon after. 

“Hope!” came the voice of Hope’s abrasive District mate. As Hope turned to call back to him, Josie, thank God, took the hint and ran as fast as she could. Knowing she was out of danger, Stefan allowed himself to finally take a breath. A few moments later, the elevator opened and Katherine came in, holding some champagne from downstairs.

“What happened?” she asked, “I heard the cannon.”

“Alyssa Chang is dead,” Stefan said as Katherine took a seat next to him, “Hope killed her.” 

“Oh dear,” Katherine said as she looked at the screen, where Hope and her Career buddies were back together. After hearing Landon had gotten away, Stefan took his attention away from the games. As long as his two were okay, he could make it through the night. But he couldn’t help feeling a touch of concern for the young career from 2, who had yet again let his girl live to see another day.

When Stefan came down the next day, Klaus’s face was stone cold as he sat alone, swirling a glass of whisky with his right hand. 

“Is that the same drink I gave you yesterday?” Stefan asked.

“Of course not,” the older man said after at least a minute passed, “I only drink refined alcohols, I’m not a savage.”

“You aren’t drinking at all,” Stefan said, sitting across from him. Klaus remained silent, “Did you watch the games last night?”

“No,” Klaus said, “All I need to know is that my daughter is alive. That’s all that matters.”

“She’s alive, and she needs you,” Stefan said, “She’s hurt. It could get infected. If it gets infected, she’ll get sick. By then, it’ll be too late.” 

“You never know,” Klaus said, “Maybe Ms. Saltzman will swoop in and save the day, again. I’m sure she’d love that.” Stefan didn’t miss the bitterness in his tone at the mention of Josie.

“So that’s what this is about,” Stefan said, “Josie.” 

“Don’t be ridiculous,” Klaus said, “I care very little for your tribute.”

“Maybe,” Stefan said, “But I don’t think Hope feels the same way. And I’m guessing you don’t either.” Klaus didn’t answer him, but his silence was answer enough, “You’re worried, right?”

“Worried about what?” Klaus asked.

“That when it comes down to it, Hope won’t be able to make the kill shot. I mean, she’s been given two opportunities, and she didn’t act on either of them. Let’s say these games do end up with the two of them. Do you think she’d be able to do it then?”

“Shut up,” the man growled.

“Is that why you don’t want to help? What, do you think she doesn’t deserve your assistance or whatever because you think she’ll let Josie win?”

“I said shut up!” he shouted, slamming his glass on the small table. The glass smashed on impact, leaving shards everywhere.

“You’re sick, Klaus,” Stefan said, “But I guess I already knew that, didn’t I?”

“You know nothing about me, Mr. Salvatore,” Klaus said, his voice dripping with venom. 

“You’re the man who murdered my brother,” Stefan said, “I know everything I need to about you.” Klaus remained silent, so Stefan sighed and got up. He was nearly out of the room when he turned and said, “You know, I see it too, and I worry.”

“For?” Klaus asked. Stefan knew Klaus just wanted him to say it aloud. He crossed his arms, walked closer to them man, and said,

“That if it comes down to it...Josie won’t kill her, either.”

“My my,” Klaus said after a minute of silence, “Have we the predicament?” All Stefan could do was nod, “Good day, Mr. Salvatore.”

“Good day, Klaus,” Stefan said, not willing to show him the same respect. He walked away and headed to the bar. As he poured himself a drink, he looked at the screen. Hope was sitting across the Cornucopia, clutching her shoulder in pain.  _ Don’t do it _ , he willed himself. But how could he sit by? Klaus wasn’t willing to help, and Stefan’s job was to help Josie. What better way to help her, then by helping her unexpected ally from last night? So he made the rounds.

“Josette isn’t hurt though,” one of the sponsors said.

“Not for Josette,” Stefan said, “For Hope. Listen, I know it’s unorthodox…” It took a lot of convincing on his part, but soon enough, he had a can of ointment sent out for the young career, with a special thank you message from him, and he didn’t miss her smile when she received it. Yep, definitely a predicament.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you guys liked this one! Next chapter will be going back to Josie :)


	10. Chapter 10

Josie looked up from the grass she’d been sleeping in. A bunch of birds were chirping, and they were making it hard to sleep. Nature’s alarm clock, she guessed. She got up and planned the rest of her day. She needed more water, and she needed to hunt for breakfast, but she also needed to be careful with her arrows. She’d accidentally broken one last night after killing a squirrel. 

Another part of her contemplated going to look for Hope. She’d spared her life two nights ago, and Josie was sure that if she did run into her again, the other girl wouldn’t kill her. But even if Hope didn’t, Roman or Jed definitely would. She’d killed Jed’s District mate, and she’d injured Roman’s. She was definitely number 1 on their hit list. Her and Landon. She’d been looking for the boy the past few days, but nothing. 

She was honestly surprised she hadn’t seen his face in the sky. She hadn’t seen or heard from him since Maya’s death. It was easy to believe that he was dead, and while she was still angry at the boy for teaming up with the Careers, she couldn’t bear to see Raf’s pain if something happened to his brother. Josie was interrupted from her thoughts on Hope and Landon when she heard the leaves crackle behind her. She whipped around, getting her bow ready in case it was the Careers. She tensed as the footsteps got closer, and was about to shoot until the person stepped out.

“Hey there,” Milton said, “I was wondering if I’d find you again.”

“Milton?” Josie asked, lowering her bow, “You almost gave me a heart attack!”

“Sorry,” the boy said, “I’m just glad you’re okay. I was worried your cannon had gone out and I hadn’t noticed. I’ve been underground the past few days, and I heard one a bit back…”

“That was the girl from 4. Hope Mikaelson killed her,” Josie said.  _ And I helped _ . While Hope had done it, her arrow had been the murder weapon.

“Damn, the girl from 4 had a real shot. You know, 4 are usually Careers. Except this year they got stuck with that loser, Sebastian.” 

“You noticed that too?” Josie asked, and he nodded, “Is he still alive?” He had been when she and Hope were talking, but it had been a few days. Then again, it would be a little hard to miss the cannons. They were pretty loud.

“Yep,” Milton said, “There hasn’t been a new death since Alyssa. I’m worried the game makers might get bored soon and send a nuke or something.”

“Can they do that?” Josie asked. That sounded kind of scary!

“They can do whatever they want, it’s their game,” Milton said, “We might not make it, but hopefully they’ll take out the Career’s supplies.”

“Supplies?” Josie asked. Milton nodded and whispered,

“Come with me.” He was quiet as he led Josie through the woods, so Josie kept an arrow in her bow in case they were attacked. Milton was right about it being quiet, and she needed to be prepared in case anything happened. Lucky enough for them, they weren’t attacked, and Milton was able to show her where the Careers were camped. 

Josie felt her heart almost swell at the sight of Hope. She looked a lot better than when she’d last seen her, considering she’d just been stabbed. There was still a hole in her shirt, but the wound was nearly healed up. Maybe her rich Dad had finally sponsored her. She was sharpening her knife on a stone, and she looked so good while doing it. 

“You good?” Milton asked, breaking her from her trance.

“Yes!” she said quickly, then ducked as the Careers looked their way. Maybe she’d said that a little too loud. The Careers stared at them for a bit before going back to their business. Sebastian was guarding them, Jed was cooking, and both Hope and Roman were sharpening weapons. But what Josie’s attention focused on was the giant mountain of supplies in the middle. That must have been what Milton had wanted to show her.

“Oh my God,” she murmured.

“Right?” Milton said, “That’s all the supplies left in the Cornucopia, and they took them all. The backpacks, weapons, food…”

“What are those mounts around it?” Josie asked, pointing to the brown mounts.

“Well, when the games begin, if you don’t step off your pedestal fast enough after the time starts, or you jump off before, they’ll blow up. My guess is that they’re using those devices as some kind of trap to keep their stuff safe.”

“Hmm,” Josie said, “Interesting.” A smile curled on Milton’s face and he said,

“Maybe if something big were to happen to that, the game makers wouldn’t nuke us.”

“Now that is an idea I can get behind,” Josie said. Her stomach growled after that, so she said, “Frist, we eat. Then we plan.”

“Sweet, I’m starving,” Milton said as they walked deeper into the woods, “Just so we can communicate better, you’re Josette, right?”

“Yeah,” she said, then added, “But my friends call me Josie.” Milton smiled and said,

“Well I’m Milton. My friends call me MG.”

Josie had found her and MG a squirrel to eat, and they were now sharing it while Josie tried to formulate a plan to take out the supplies.

“The most important thing is that they can’t be around when it happens,” Josie said, “If they see us, we’ll be dead in a second.”

“I might have an idea for that,” MG said. He got up and pulled a giant clump of leaves from the trees, “These are pretty flammable. I’m thinking that we set a fire. We’ll lure them away by thinking there’s a tribute to kill, then you take out the food with a bow.”

“How?”

“With the bombs,” MG said, “They’re very sensitive. All you’ve gotta do is get something to hit one. Then you run as fast as you can.”

“Where will you be during this? I need to know you’ll be safe,” Josie said.

“I’ll be fine. I’m the fastest boy from back home. I’ll set the fire, and when I hear them coming, I’ll get back here and hide.”

“No, you’re a good climber,” Josie said, “Stay in the trees, and I’ll come find you. Deal?”

“Deal,” MG said, “So, when do we start?”

Gathering the leaves took longer than Josie and MG would have liked, so the boy decided to pass the time by having the two of them asking about life at home.

“Who was your best friend?” he asked.

“My sister, Lizzie,” Josie said, “And I had another close friend, Rafael. He’s actually Landon’s older brother. What about you?”

“Kym’s brother, Kaleb,” MG said, “He was like my brother, too.”

“I remember Kaleb,” Josie said, “He was picked at the Reaping.” MG nodded,

“Kym loves her brother more than anyone, and I knew she wouldn’t want to see anything happen to him, so I volunteered.”

“Was she happy about that?” MG shook his head,

“No she was not. But I’d like to think it meant something. She knows Kaleb is safe at home. That’s gotta help her sleep at night, right?”

“Right,” Josie said. All that kept her going was knowing Lizzie, her Mom, and Rafael were safe. Thinking about them and Kaleb made her ask, “What’s your family like?”

“Not bad,” MG said, “I’ve got a Mom and Dad, they love me a lot. Mom tried hard not to cry when they said goodbye, but it hit Dad pretty hard.” Josie thought of her birth parents, who she hardly remembered. Would they have cried while sending her off? Mom had cried, but she’d kept a strong front for Lizzie. Josie hoped she was still doing that now. “I wouldn’t say anything because you never know, but I think they knew that I was never, you know…”  _ Damn. _

“Oh,” was all Josie could say. What else was there to say? That they were wrong? Josie herself didn’t think she was making it out, so why give MG false promises?

“You said you’re friends with Landon’s brother,” MG said, cutting her from her thoughts, “Were you and Landon friends?”

“I mean, kind of. Rafael and Landon don’t live together, but they used to, so that was when I would see him more. But nowadays, we don’t really talk.”

“Hmm. I thought differently, watching his interview and all.” Josie’s cheeks reddened.

“You saw that?”

“ _ Everyone _ saw that,” MG said, “It was the talk of the night. People were kind of thinking you felt the same way. They probably think the two of you are together right now.”

“Well I don’t feel the same,” Josie said, “Landon is nice, well he  _ was _ nice before he teamed up with the Careers, but before this, I never saw myself having a future with him.”

“Not even a little bit?” MG asked. Josie shrugged,

“That’s not the way that I see him.” Though she was mad at him, she did wish she knew where he was. It was worrying that she hadn’t seen him once since the tracker jacker incident almost a week ago. What if he went feral alone in the woods, and went on a killing spree? That happened a lot!

“But if you think of someone you’d like to spend the rest of your life with, what do you see?” MG asked, bringing her thoughts back to the present. Josie shrugged and said,

“I don’t know, no one I guess. I’ve never wanted a family, I can’t have kids. Not if this could be their future.” There was a silence between them that MG broke by saying,

“I love her. Kym.” Josie paused,

“What?” He nodded,

“I never had the courage to tell her, and I actually planned on telling her once the Reaping was over. This was her last one. We never asked for extra food or anything so both our names were only in there a few times, but she wasn’t lucky I guess. It wasn’t just about protecting her brother when I went up there to volunteer. I wanted to be with her in case she never came back.”

“Then why aren’t you with her now?” Josie asked. He shrugged,

“Like I said, I never told her. We were friends through Kaleb and all that, but beyond that...we never planned on teaming up or anything.”

“Have you tried looking for her?” Josie asked. He nodded,

“I did at first. Instead I found you and suggested dropping that nest. After that I pretty much went off the grid, hid in the trees, all that good stuff. And now, here we are.”

“Well I think that after we blow up the supplies, you should tell her,” Josie said, “You’re her friend, so I don’t think she’ll kill you, and considering Hope or Roman will be the one who makes it out of this alive, the rest of us don’t have much time left.”

“Does it scare you? To talk about your own death like that?” MG asked.

“It did,” Josie admitted, “But not anymore.” 

“Then let’s do it,” MG said, “You and me. We’ll blow up the food, then we’ll go find Kym, and I’ll tell her. Hopefully we’ll make it to her alive.”

“Sounds like a plan,” Josie said, and they shook on it. As they continued to gather their leave bundles, MG said,

“Just for fun, if we’re placing bets on Roman and Hope, who do you think will make it?”

“Hope,” Josie said, “Definitely Hope.”

Josie and MG had finished scattering the leaves, and Josie was going over the plan with him before they had to split up.

“Once you light one, you get going. Don’t stay in one place too long. When you’re done, you get back here and climb up a tree. I’ll be right back once I trigger the explosion. Then we’ll get out of this area and look for Kym.”

“Sounds good,” MG said, “But we should have a code in case we get held up.”

“How will we do that?” Josie asked, “We won’t be together.” 

“Watch,” MG said. He looked up and whistled four notes. It was a very pretty tune, but Josie still wouldn’t be able to hear him. She was about to point that out, when all of the birds in the sky started tweeting the same tone.

“Whoa!”

“Pretty cool, right? You try.” Josie couldn’t whistle, so she sang out the tune. The birds did the same thing. MG smiled and said,

“See, you’ll hear that. Your voice is awesome by the way.”

“Thank you! That was amazing!” 

“I know, right? I think of it as the beauty in the darkness,” he said.

“I like that,” Josie said.

“Me too. Ready?” Josie nodded, and she gave MG one last hug before he went into the woods, and Josie made her way to the Cornucopia. When she got there, she saw Sebastian and Jed were both guarding while Hope and Roman sparred in the back. Hope’s moves had either gotten better since Alyssa, or Roman was a weaker fighter because she was doing a lot better. She’d gotten so invested in watching Hope, that she almost forgot about the plan. At least until the smoke came out from the trees.

“Yo Roman, check it out!” Jed called to the boy. A smile spread over Roman’s face.

“Let’s hope it’s the miner trash. Come on!” He said to Hope. She grabbed a knife and followed, with Roman giving Sebastian instructions to watch the pile. The boy nodded, and tightened his hands around the spear he was holding as he kept his watch. Josie was about to make her move when a flash of brown hair crossed her eyes. 

She watched as the girl from Five, the same girl who she’d crashed into after the bloodbath, made a dash for the pile, carefully avoiding the bombs, Josie added, grabbed the backpack, and left. She was good. She must have been studying the traps. For the Careers guard, Sebastian really wasn’t doing a great job. Josie could see more fires starting, and she knew she had to act soon. 

She readied her bow and aimed it at a bag of apples dangling from the side. If she tore the bag open just right, the falling fruit would set off the bombs for sure. She took a few seconds to aim her bow right, and when she had her shot, she took it.

What happened next felt almost unreal. The bow hit the bag, and the apples fell, and once the first apple rolled into the bomb, it set off a chain reaction. Josie covered her ears and cowered under the bush as bomb after bomb went off. It was so loud! 

She could faintly hear Sebastain’s screams, but they were nothing compared to the loud explosions. When it was over, her ears were ringing, and the scene in front of her looked like a scene right out of a mining explosion. Ash was everywhere, all the food and backpacks had been blown to bits, and Sebastian looked horrified. 

The sound had alerted the Careers back, and Josie watched as horror set in on Roman’s face, but it quickly turned to anger when he saw Sebastian. Josie willed the other boy to run, but he stayed in an attempt to defend himself. Josie watched as Roman angrily shoved the boy and started to berate him. 

Sebastian offered an explanation, but didn’t even get a sentence in before Roman grabbed his neck and snapped it. 

Josie almost screamed, but covered her mouth as the loud cannon rang through the air. She almost didn’t hear it with how bad her ears were right now. She found herself studying Hope’s expression, and saw genuine fear in her eyes. Josie guessed that it had come from the fact that she’d never seen him kill so quickly like that. 

Boys like bravado, Hope had said. Bravado didn’t mean killing someone so swiftly in that manner. In her fear of being seen, she quickly pulled herself to her feet and ran into the woods, hoping she could hear the birds if MG called for her.

Josie stumbled through the woods, desperate to find MG. She’d gotten back to the area where she’d told him to be, but he wasn’t there. She sang the tune, but he didn’t respond. She rubbed her ears. The ringing had mostly vanished, but it was still there.

“Come on come on!” She said. She needed to hear him whistle back! She sang the tune again. She waited ten seconds, then thirty more. Nothing.

“MG!” she called.  _ Where was he?!  _ She ventured deeper through the woods, and after walking for what she’d felt like took hours, she heard a faint call.

“Josie! Josie help!”  _ MG! _ Josie picked up her pace and followed his voice. She found him in the middle of the woods under a giant net.

“MG!” she exclaimed. She ran over to him and quickly pulled the boy into her arms. He was hyperventilating, and she could feel him shake.

“I heard the cannon, and I whistled, but you didn’t call back, then I got caught in the net…” he sputtered out, and Josie held him tighter.

“It’s okay, it’s okay, I’ve got you,” Josie said, keeping him close. As they pulled apart, she was shaking the rest of the net away when she saw Jed running towards them with his spear. She quickly pushed MG out of the way, and as Jed threw his spear, Josie fired an arrow right into his chest. As the cannon rang out, she turned to MG,

“That was clo-” she started, but paused as she saw MG with Jed’s spear right through his chest, “No no no.” MG slowly pulled the spear out, then sank to his knees, and Josie grabbed him before he could fall to the ground. She gently laid him down and applied pressure.

“Everything is okay,” she told him, “You’re going to be okay.” She could get some leaves to press against it like she’d done for Hope. Everything was gonna be fine.

“Josie,” MG said weakly from the ground, “You don’t have to lie to me.”

“I’m not lying,” Josie said, even though she was. MG held his hand out, and Josie quickly grasped it, not wanting to let go. 

“You need to promise me three things, can you do that?” Josie didn’t want to lie to him anymore, so she nodded, and through her tears, she said,

“Anything.”

“Promise me you’ll tell Kym what I told you.” Josie nodded and said,

“Of course. She’ll know,” she promised. MG continued with,

“And promise me that before I go, you’ll sing me something. Anything.” Josie’s tears were hot and rolling down her face in big clumps.

“I promise,” she said weakly.

“And most of all,” he said, “Promise me that you’ll be the one who makes it out of here. Forget Hope or Roman. You  _ have _ to win.” Josie was silent, “Promise me, Josie.”

“I promise,” she said, in almost a whisper. She clasped MG’s hand harder, and watched him smile as he nodded. She then started to sing the same song she would sing to Lizzie when she had a nightmare. It was from an old movie from before the war, and it was Josie’s favorite song. She kissed MG’s hand and started to sing.

“Come with me, and you’ll be in a world of pure imagination…” she continued the first verse, and as she ended it, she realized MG’s grip on her hand was gone. She listened to him, and realized that his chest was no longer going up and down. The cannon sounded soon after. 

Josie wasn’t sure what to do, so she did the only thing she felt capable of. She screamed. She screamed and threw Jed’s spear as far as she could. She cried hot tears MG, and even for Jed who was just trying to put on a show for the Capitol, even at the expense of someone’s life. 

She screamed at the Capitol, who was probably getting joy out of everyone's anguish, and she cried for herself, who had just directly taken someone else’s life. She could see Jed’s motionless body, with her fired arrow sticking out of it. She’d done that. She’d taken someone’s friend, brother, son... _ Stop it, Josie! _ She told herself. 

She’d promised MG, and now she needed to make good on it. She knew the hovercrafts would be coming for Jed and MG soon, so she got to work. She picked the flowers from the ground, and arranged them around his body. He deserved a proper memorial before the game makers dumped him in a box. She covered his wound with the bright colored roses, and scattered them around his body. When she was done, she planted a small kiss on his forehead.

“Rest easy, MG,” she said. She stood up from the ground and looked up into the arena sky. She knew all the districts were watching, so she kissed her fingers to her hand and raised them up. It wasn’t much, but it was something. It had to be.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a warning, next chapter will be pretty heavy, with an intense Hosie scene. I know this one was sad but I really hope you guys liked it!


	11. Chapter 11

Josie was now on her own, and trying her best to stay ahead of herself to remain safe. She’d promised Lizzie and she’d promised MG. She had to win this. She went to the lake and put some water in her canteen. She hadn’t had anything to drink in nearly a day. 

She struggled with her water. It tasted fine, but she was having trouble swallowing. All she could think of was MG and Jed. She could still see that arrow flying into Jed’s chest. He was a human being, and she’d killed him, almost like he was game. And then MG...Josie couldn’t bear to think of it anymore.

She was sitting on a rock in the woods, slowly sipping her water that night when the sky lit up. It showed Jed, Sebastian, and MG’s faces. Josie wondered what Kym was thinking right now. Was she mourning her friend, just as Josie was? Did she want revenge? 

Josie had somewhat gotten her own revenge by killing Jed, but she knew Jed wasn’t the only one at fault. It was the goddamn Capitol! She grabbed a stone and angrily threw it at the tree. Screw the Capitol! Oh the ways she wanted to make them pay for this! Those sick, sick people who just let this happen! 

_ Screw you! _ she wanted to shout at the sky,  _ Screw all of you! _ She decided against it in fear. Usually tributes who fought back were given “planned” deaths that Josie couldn’t experience. She had to win. She had to keep her promises. She’d look for Kym in the morning, and pray that the girl would be in a forgiving enough mood to hear her out. She knew she wouldn’t be though, because who would?

As she got ready to sleep, she counted who was left in the arena. Her and Kym made two, then Hope and Roman were 4, then Landon and the girl from Five made six. Six tributes left. If one more person died, and Josie didn’t win, at least she could say she made it to the Top 5, right? Wrong. 

It was a morbid thought, and she couldn’t think like that right now. Not when she’d promised MG. And when a big part of her still believed Hope would win.

She barely slept that night, and in the morning everything hurt. She’d fallen asleep on the rock and had ended up in a weird twisted position. She got up, drank what was left in her bottle, then went on her trip to find Kym, and hopefully stay alive. She’d walked for a few minutes when she suddenly heard an announcement come over the arena.

“Ladies and Gentleman, tributes of the Seventy Fourth Annual Hunger Games, this is your President speaking,” came President Vardemus’s voice. Oh how Josie hated that man.

“I’m speaking to all of you today to address a rule change.” Josie had been tuning him out, but that sounded interesting. The only time there was ever a rule change in the games was during the Quarter Quell, but that was always announced before the game. In the entire history of the games, they’d never announced a rule change in the middle. Well, almost end since there were six of them.

“For these games, we are allowing that there be two victors, given, and no exceptions, that the two winners are from the same district.” Josie nearly dropped her water bottle.

“That is all,” Vardemus continued, “Happy Hunger Games, and may the odds be ever in your favor.” The message cut off, and Josie was frozen for a second. Two victors from the same district...was this actually happening? She ran a hand through her hair, and realized what she had to do. She needed to find Landon, and fast. She broke into a run into the woods, not stopping for even a second.

The running had taken a bigger toll than she’d thought, so she stopped to get some more water. She checked to make sure it was clear before going to the lake. She was slowly sliding down the rocks when she saw something that made her pause. Blood. There was a long train of blood that seemed to be leading somewhere. 

Josie pulled an arrow out and got her bow ready as she followed it, just in case someone decided to jump out of her. But instead of someone jumping out, she saw a leg in the ground. It was covered in mud, she’d have missed it if she wasn’t in a hurry. Was it a body that the hovercrafts had missed? But how would they have missed it? They all had trackers in their arms. And they couldn’t have just died. There’d been no new cannons since MG. Josie gently kicked the leg, and heard a faint,

“Josie?” She would have screamed if the voice wasn’t so familiar.

“Landon?” she asked. She looked at the leg, and slowly started to move the mud out of the way, revealing both of his legs. One was cut up pretty badly. Okay, she had his legs, but where was his face?

“Up here,” the boy croaked. Josie looked up and realized that Landon had disguised his face under the med. She quickly got to work moving it out of his face and exclaimed,

“How long have you been under there?”

“Since the boy from 10 died,” Landon said as he pulled himself to a sitting position. He was covered in mud, so Josie got some water from the lake and attempted to wash some off. He had some blood on his face too from a cut that was definitely infected. But that was nothing compared to his leg. If they made it out, they’d probably have to perform some kind of surgery because it was  _ nasty. _

“How many have died since?” Landon asked.  _ Alyssa, Jed, Sebastian, MG _ , Josie thought, but besides Jed, Landon probably didn’t know any of them, so Josie said,

“Both tributes from 4, the boy from 11, and Jed.”

“Jed?” Landon exclaimed, “Which beast took him out? Roman? Hope?”

“Me,” Josie said, not willing to go into more than that. Luckily for her, Landon didn’t ask. She gave Landon some water to drink, and she asked,

“Did you hear Vardemus’s announcement?”

“I did,” he said, “I’m gonna assume that’s why you came to find me, right?”

“Not the only reason,” Josie said, though it had been a pretty big incentive, “I’ve been worried about you, I haven’t seen you in days.”

“Yeah,” Landon said, “I mean, every time I hear a cannon…” Josie just nodded, deciding not to tell the boy that she’d been around when literally all of those deaths happened. Well, besides the District 10 Male. May he rest in peace.

“Come on, we need to get out of here,” she said. She helped him up, and winced when she saw how deep the cut in his leg was, “What happened there?”

“Roman,” Landon said, “He stabbed me and left me for dead before leaving with Jed.” Josie frowned. When she’d left Hope, she’d heard Roman tell her that he’d lost Landon, not that he’d let him go. That was...unexpected to say the least.

“Well it’s definitely infected,” Josie said, letting Landon lean on her shoulder, “Come on, let’s find somewhere less in the open. I can take a better look at it.” 

She walked Landon away from the lake, and as they went through the forest, she kept an eye out for Roman and Hope. If Hope had been telling the truth about them planning on marrying, the fact that there could be two victors would definitely push them to play harder. They kept walking, and Josie ended up taking Landon out of the forest completely, with the two of them finding shelter in a cave.

“Come on, you can rest here,” Josie said, helping Landon sit. She shrugged off her backpack and quiver, and placed them against the cave wall with her bow. That was the first time she’d taken her quiver off since she’d gotten it. It felt like removing a weight.

“How am I looking?” Landon asked. Josie pulled the fabric of his pants apart and looked at the wound. Some of the blood was black, and the sweat from Landon’s forehead hinted that he was possibly about to develop a fever, which would make it harder for his body to fight off the infection.

“Not great,” she admitted, “Stefan sent me some burn cream after the fire on the first night. I’m going to try it on this and see if it works.” Landon nodded, in no position to argue. 

Josie unzipped the backpack and pulled out the cream. She opened it up and dabbed a bit on her fingers. She applied it to Landon’s cut, and he gasped.

“Is it supposed to hurt that much?” he asked.

“Maybe for a bit,” Josie said, “Then it’s supposed to cool your skin.” Landon shook his head,

“It is definitely not doing that, my leg feels like it’s on fire!” As he started to sweat more, Josie grabbed the water bottle and poured a small bit on his leg to ease the pain.

“Okay, I guess that’s a no on the burn cream,” Josie said once Landon calmed down, “We’re just going to have to find another way to treat it. For now you need to rest.”

“You should too,” Landon said, “I’ve been lying down for days. You look exhausted.”

“Someone needs to keep watch,” Josie said, “You think Hope and Roman are resting?”

“I mean probably,” he said, “They’re the only Careers left. Even  _ they _ need to be careful. And right now, careful means staying out of trouble.”

“I guess you’re right,” Josie said. She was pretty tired. She hadn’t slept much last night, with her and MG taking alternating shifts. She’d been too nervous about their plan. Their plan had been successful, which meant Hope and Roman had about as many supplies as they did, so they weren’t at as big of an advantage. Then again, neither Hope nor Roman had an injury as bad as Landon’s. And she had no idea what she was going to do to make it better. 

Mom and Lizzie were the “doctors” of the family. Josie only knew how to take care of basic wounds, like Hope’s stings. Landon had an infected gash, and was about to develop a fever. Josie didn’t have any medicine, and it would take her forever to find those leaves she’d used to treat Hope. And she was worried that if the infection got worse, Landon would lose his ability to walk. And that would be the greatest disadvantage of all.

“Josie,” Landon croaked weakly from the ground, “Will you lay with me?”

“Huh?” Josie asked, a little annoyed that she’d been pulled from her thoughts. She needed to plan what they were doing next!

“Please?” he asked, “I’m just...I’m really cold.” Josie watched him shivering, just as Hope had been during their last night together. She’d given Hope her jacket, so why couldn’t she just lay with Landon? Same thing, right? 

Josie moved from her spot against the cave wall, and laid on the cold rock with Landon, holding him gently. She could feel his body shake under her hands. He was getting sicker. She’d need to think of something fast. She heard his breathing start to slow, and she was about to assume the worst when she noticed he was just sleeping, with his arms around Josie. His arms weren’t as strong as Rafael’s, but they kept her warm. She allowed them to hold her as she slipped into a fitful sleep.

When Josie woke up, Landon still had his arms around her, so she gently moved them before going to check on his leg. It hadn’t changed, which was good since that meant it hadn’t gotten worse, but bad because it hadn’t gotten better. She decided that she’d need to go our and get some water, and maybe look for some leaves. She slid her quiver back on, and was picking up her bow when Landon stirred.

“Where are you going?” he asked.

“To get some more water, and find some leaves for your leg,” Josie said, “I’ll be right back.” 

“Hey wait, I’ll come with you,” Landon said, “You shouldn’t be out there alone.”

“While I appreciate your concern, you need to be resting your leg. No one will come out all this way to find you, and I’ll try not to go too far. I’ll be back soon.”

“Jo,” Landon said as she was nearly out of the cave. She turned around, “Be safe, okay?”

“I will be. Try to get some more rest, alright?.” Landon nodded and went back to lie down, hugging his jacket close. Josie jumped down from the cave wall and ventured into the woods. She paused at first, listening for the sounds of footsteps crunching, or even for the birds that could end up being muttations and attacking her. 

She hadn’t been paying attention when Jed had come for her and MG, and that had cost her too much. She wasn’t losing Landon either. She wasn’t losing anybody else.

_ Josette watched as her teacher drew some practice problems on the chalkboard. When she finished, she dusted her hands off and asked, _

_ “Alright, who would like to come up to the board and demonstrate how to solve these?” No one volunteered, so she picked for them. _

_ “How about Elizabeth and Landon?” she asked, gesturing to Josette’s sister and best friend’s brother, “Come on up.” _

_ “I hate this class,” Lizzie grumbled as she stood up. Josette giggled. It was first grade, how much could someone hate it? Lizzie flounced up to the board, while Landon followed more quietly. He gave Josette a wave as he passed her, and offered up a toothless smile.  _

_ People called him toothless, as if they weren’t going to lose the same teeth one day. Josette gave him a small wave back, which elicited a laugh from the rest of the class.  _

_ “Josette has a boyfriend!” one of her classmates teased. _

_ “I do not!” Josette said back, and as the teacher attempted to calm all the students down, there was a knock on the door.  _

_ “Landon, Elizabeth, you can sit back down now,” she said. _

_ “But we’re not done yet,” Landon said, only to receive a harsh glare from their usually level headed teacher. That was new. Landon went back to his seat in the back, and Lizzie went to her seat next to Josette. She leaned in to her and asked, _

_ “Whaddya think they’re talking about?” Josette shrugged, wishing she could listen in, The teacher finished talking with the man, turned to the class, and listed a bunch of students to come with her. Josette didn’t pay attention until her and Lizzie’s names were listed as well. _

_ “Oooh,” all the non listed kids said, thinking their classmates were in trouble. Was she in trouble? She hadn’t done anything wrong! She walked in a single file line with the rest of the students, and sat on the long bench next to her sister. What happened next didn’t feel real. _

_ “There was an accident,” that same man said. He went into a long winded explanation of an accident in the mines that Josette couldn't even understand. She just knew one thing. Her Father was gone, and he was never coming back. It was complete silence soon after.  _

_ Some children cried, others remained quiet, studying their feet. Lizzie cried, and while Josette wanted to, she just couldn’t. It wasn’t that she didn’t feel sad, it was that she didn’t feel anything at all. The room they were in grew quieter as Mothers came to take their children home so they could grieve their loss together.  _

_ No one came for Josette or her sister. They didn’t have a mother to come pick them up. Eventually, the school day was over, and their teacher noticed them sitting by themselves. _

_ “Hey, why don’t you two come with me?” she asked, extending her hands out to both of them. Lizzie and Josette took them eagerly. They liked their teacher a lot, and felt safe with her.  _

_ She walked them out of the school and to a small house at the end of the street. There was a small goat in the yard, and Lizzie giggled as it licked her when she went to pet it. _ _   
_

_ “ _ _ Wait here, okay?” she asked the two girls, who nodded. She knocked on the door, and a few moments later, a blonde woman answered. She was wearing an apron, and Josette could smell the unmistakable scent of bread from behind her. She had bread?! _

_ “Bonnie?” the woman asked, “What’s going on?” _

_ “Alaric Saltzman was one of the fatalities,” Bonnie said, and Josette noticed as a look of anguish crossed over the woman’s face. She looked at Josette and her sister, saying, _

_ “Bring them inside. I’ll make some tea.” Bonnie ushered Lizzie and Josette inside, and the woman let them sit on the couch before giving them some cookies from the bakery. Landon’s Mom made them, and they were delicious.  _

_ But Josette could barely focus on the delicious treat in her hands. She looked at Ms. Bennett and her friend, who were both locked in a quiet conversation. When Ms. Bennett’s friend saw her looking, she moved to shut the door separating them. _

_ “Lizzie,” Josette said quietly, “What do you think they’re talkin’ about?” _

_ “Dunno,” her sister said with a shrug, “What’s gonna happen to us without Daddy?” Josette didn’t know. They would probably end up on the streets like the other kids with no Mom and Dad. The ones who all ended up working at the Hob, if they weren’t chosen for the games. That sounded like a nightmare. The only one worse than losing your Dad. _

_ “Girls?” Ms. Bennett asked, breaking her thoughts, “Come say hello to my friend.” The two girls stood up from the couch and followed their teacher into the kitchen. Mr. Bennett’s friend looked at them with a warm smile, and said, _

_ “Hey girls, my name is Caroline. I’m a friend of Ms. Bennetts.” Josette still felt nervous, but she could see Lizzie warming up to her.  _

_ “I’m Elizabeth,” she said, “But everyone calls me Lizzie.” _

_ “It is so nice to meet you, Lizzie,” Caroline said, shaking her hand, which made Lizzie smile big. Caroline then turned to Josette and asked, _

_ “What’s your name, sweetie?” _

_ “Josette,” she mumbled very quietly. Caroline frowned and asked, _

_ “What was that? Josie?” Josie. That sounded nice. _

_ “I’m Josie,” she said much more confidently. Caroline gave her a hug and said, _

_ “Well it is so nice to meet you, Josie. What do you say we go back to your house and pack some things, and then we can eat some of this bread. Does that sound okay?” Lizzie and Josie nodded, “Great. Come on, kiddos. Say goodbye to Ms. Bennett.” _

_ “Bye Ms. Bennett,” the two girls said to their teacher. _

_ “I’ll see you two tomorrow in school,” she said, giving them a hug, “Don’t be afraid to talk to me or Caroline about anything, okay?” They both nodded, “Good. I love you girls, and I’ll see you soon.” _

Josie never saw Ms. Bennett again after that day. The school had been attacked the next day after some Peacekeepers invaded the Seam. Lizzie and Josie had needed to go to a new school, and Ms. Bennett had needed to find work elsewhere. Just another casualty of a dumb war. 

Josie heard the rustle of leaves, and tensed.  _ Food or foe? _ She was answered with foe when Roman’s loud voice echoed through the woods, probably scaring away any real chance of food.  _ Dumbass. _ Though while he was dumb, he was also a brute. Josie needed to hide. 

She pushed away the tough undergrowth and positioned her body under it, keeping herself out of Roman’s view. The boy came into the clearing, with Hope not too far behind. Josie got a better look at where she’d been stabbed, and was surprised to see it completely healed. All that remained was a hole in her shirt.

“Do you see any food?” Roman asked.

“No,” Hope said, “You probably scared it off with your gargantuan footsteps.” Josie held in a laugh. It was kinda funny to see Roman and Hope grow tired of each other.

“Let’s head towards the lake,” Roman said, “We can get some water, and maybe some creatures will be hiding around there.”  _ Not really _ , Josie thought. The lake didn’t have any trees around it, so if they wanted squirrels or a bird, they were better off in the woods. 

She had a feeling they didn’t know that. They were heading out to leave, and while Josie was moving to get a better view to make sure they were gone, a twig crunched under her hand.  _ Shit! _

“What was that?” Roman asked, turning around.  _ Shit shit shit. _ Was this really happening? Was this going to be the end? Josie watched as Hope turned, and nearly gulped as she and the girl made direct eye contact through the thick bush.  _ I’m sorry MG, _ she thought. She wasn’t keeping her promises.

“There’s nothing there,” Hope said, and Josie almost gasped. Almost. 

“Are you sure? I heard-” Roman said, but Hope cut him off.

“There’s nothing,” she said, “C’mon, let’s get to the lake before it gets too cold.”  _ It was already too cold! _ Josie had been shivering all morning.

“Hope, I swear I heard something!”

“And I swear I didn’t!” Hope snapped back, “Let’s go, I’m thirsty.” She pulled Roman away, and Josie noticed for the first time that he walked with a limp. Had someone hit him? Interesting. Once their footsteps were out of earshot, Josie came out of the bush. 

Them going to the lake meant that she’d need to find another source of water, and she still needed food. Landon was growing weaker. If he didn’t get something to eat, he wasn’t going to make it much longer. She went on a course opposite of Hope and Roman, and ended up in a dark stretch of woods that she barely recognized. 

She didn’t even think she’d been in this part before. Nearly two weeks in this place and she hadn’t seen it all...wild. She heard a faint chirping, so she pulled an arrow out of her quiver. She saw a starling pecking at the tree. She aimed her arrow, and she fired right as the starling attempted to fly away.

“Rest in peace, little bird,” Josie said as she walked up to it. She picked it up and winced as its blood dripped all over the grass. She wondered how the Capitol got these animals. They weren’t artificial in any way. They felt just like the ones at home. She shook the starling, splattering blood everywhere, they continued to find another water source. The lake couldn’t be the only one. 

She was walking down the path of pebbles in the forest when she felt something cold under her feet. She looked down and realized that her feet were starting to squelch on the ground under her. She crouched down and felt the pebbles in her hands, and she smiled as she felt the wet liquid. She pushed all the pebbles out of the way, and scooped some of the liquid in her hands. She tasted it, and was glad to see that it tasted just like the water from the lake, maybe even better. She scooped it in her water bottle, and took the bottle and the starling back to the cave.

When Josie got back, Landon was asleep. Josie crouched next to him and gently stroked his cheek until his eyes opened. He looked panicked at first, until he saw Josie, and he took a breath.

“I tried to wait up, I didn’t even realize…” he was saying.

“It’s okay,” Josie said, “You should be resting your leg.” She dropped the starling on the ground and said, “I’ll need to find a way to cook this, we can’t eat it raw.”

“The rocks,” Landon suggested, “If we made a small fire, maybe no one would see.” That wasn’t the worst idea. Josie grabbed some of the stones together, and attempted to clink them together to make the fire, but that wasn’t her strong suit. Landon noticed her struggle and asked, “May I?”

“Sure,” Josie said, handing him the rocks. While he worked, Josie pulled the water out and poured some in the cap for Landon. She turned to tell him she could go into the woods to cook the starling, so she received a surprise when she saw Landon blowing on a small fire.

“How did you learn how to do that?” she asked.

“In training,” he said, “I was doing a lot more than camouflage.” Josie walked up to him and handed him some water.

“Impressive,” she said.

“Thanks,” Landon said. He took a sip of the water, and Josie winced as he started to cough. She placed a hand on his back, and kept him upright.

“Sorry,” he said once the coughing stopped.

“It’s okay. I’m gonna cook this, maybe some food will make you feel better.” It was hopeful thinking, though. A cooked bird wouldn’t cure his infection. It didn’t mean it wasn’t worth a shot, though. After she finished cooking the bird, she blew the fire out. She didn’t want to take any chances. She did miss the warmth it provided, though. 

It was starting to get colder in the arena. Stefan had something about the game makers dropping temperatures to get rid of tributes after a while had passed. At least Josie could say she’d made it that far. Landon had some difficulties swallowing, and Josie knew it was because he was getting sicker. This wasn’t looking good. After they finished, Josie laid with him like she had the night before, only this time they ended up talking. 

“What do you think our families are up to?” Landon asked.

“Worrying about us, hoping our cannons aren’t next,” Josie said honestly, “They probably got some hope when they learned we could both come back.”

“But besides us and this, what do you think?” Landon asked. Josie shrugged, “My Dad is probably drunk, my Mom is acting like I don’t exist, and Raf…”

“What?” Josie asked as Landon trailed off.

“It’s nothing,” Landon said, which meant it definitely was.

“What is it?” Josie asked. 

“When Rafael went to say goodbye, what did he say?” Josie stiffened, thinking about Rafael saying she would be the one to make it out. Landon had already heard it directly from his Mother, he didn’t need to know Raf thought the same thing.

“He just said goodbye, and I promised him I’d look out for you,” she said.

“And nothing else?” Landon asked.

“And nothing else,” Josie affirmed. She listened to the boy laugh, “What?”

“You know what he said to me?” Josie shook her head. “He said that he loved both of us very much, but the way he felt about you…”  _ Wait, what? _ “He was in love, Josie.”

“That can’t be true,” Josie said, “Rafael is my friend, my  _ brother _ .”

“Ouch,” Landon said.

“I’m serious, Landon,” Josie said, “I don’t see him like that. And I never will.” Her voice faltered as she said that. She hoped he didn't notice.

“Have you ever seen anyone like that?” Josie shrugged,

“I don’t know,” she admitted. She knew this was awkward, but she continued, “But you have, right? What does it feel like?” Landon turned to her, took her hand and said,

“You’ll never know it’ll hit you until it does. You know that person, you’ve seen them before, but then there’s just one moment where suddenly...they become the most important person in the world. They’re on your mind hour after hour, day after day. There is nothing you wouldn’t do for them, even at the expense of yourself.”

“How does one get to that point?” Josie asked.

“That’s a mystery I’ll never be able to solve,” Landon said, “All I do know is…” he trailed off again, and looked at Josie, his eyes looking like they bared directly into her soul.

“Is what?” Josie asked, leaning closer. She wasn’t answered since Landon just leaned in, and kissed her. Josie knew she should have stopped it, but having someone that close, even if it was just Landon...she hadn’t felt affection like that in a long time. She moved her hands to cup his face, and continued to kiss him hard, letting the rest of the world fall away.

A few hours later, Josie woke up to see Landon still asleep next to her, and she noticed that her head was resting on his chest. She was content with laying there, just so she could hold on to his warmth for a little while longer, but she was interrupted when she saw a parachute heading their way. A sponsor? Josie quietly slipped away from Landon and ran to the parachute, hoping it contained the medicine she desperately needed for Landon’s infection. There was a note on the top from Stefan.

_ “Good show last night, keep it up -Stefan,”  _ the message read. Josie placed the note in her jacket pocket, and opened the top. It wasn’t medicine, but it did make her mouth water.  _ Soup _ .

“Josie?” she heard Landon groggily ask, “What’s going on?” 

“It’s soup,” Josie said, “From Stefan. Look.” She got up and walked over to him, showing him the contents of the bowl, “It’s actual soup!”   


“Oh my God,” Landon said, and Josie could see his mouth water.

“Here, I’ll do it,” Josie said as Landon shakily reached for the spoon. If she continued to put on this show as Landon’t doting caretaker...she could get more sponsors. And maybe even the medicine! 

She fed him the soup, and hoped the audience was watching. After finishing the soup, Landon went back to sleep, and Josie kept a watch at first, but it wasn’t long before she was getting drowsy again, and falling right back into his arms. 

They laid like that together for a few hours, and she was almost asleep when an announcement came over the arena, waking Landon up in the process. 

“Tributes of the 74th Hunger Games,” the head game maker said, “It has come to our attention that each District Team is in desperate need of a certain item. Come morning, we will be having a feast at the Cornucopia. There will be a bag labeled per District with the item you most desire. Happy Hunger Games, and may the odds be ever in your favor.” The announcement cut off after that.

“Your medicine,” Josie said, “That’s gotta be it.”

“Josie, no,” Landon said, “It’s too dangerous. If I can’t come with you, there won’t be anyone there to watch your back.”

“I can take care of myself.”

“Against two Career tributes? Forget it, I don’t want to risk that.”

“Landon-”

“Please,” he said, “Don’t risk your life for me.” Josie wanted to give him her many reasons why she needed to attend the feast, but he was very insistent.

“Okay,” Josie said, “Okay, I won’t go.” 

“Thank you,” he said, “Come on. Let’s go back to bed.” Josie nodded and laid down next to him, watching as he fell asleep. But she didn’t. Once she was sure she was out, and the sun rose, Josie grabbed her bow and quiver, and headed out to the feast.

Josie listened for other tributes as she made her way to the Cornucopia. She was in the trees at the moment, using a technique MG had taught her about jumping from branch to branch. Eventually she’d have to go to the ground, but she could at least remain safe now. Hope and Roman couldn’t climb. 

She made it to the jumping point, and descended from the tree as quietly as she could. She peered out at the Cornucopia. Four bags were there. 2, 5, 11, and 12. No one had arrived yet. 

Josie was about to make her move when a flash of movement stopped her. The girl from Five shot across the field, grabbed her bag, then ran off. She was good. Josie wouldn’t be surprised if Hope and Roman died of starvation and the girl from Five made it out on top. Nothing was impossible in these games. Josie waited for another team to come out, but they didn’t come. She had to go now, or she never would.

Josie sprinted into the field, the bag with a 12 on it in sight. She made it to the table, and grabbed the bag, but just as she was about to make her escape, she was slammed hard in the side. Josie nearly screamed as she was tossed to the ground. She landed on her back and found herself staring into the cold eyes of Hope Mikaelson.

“Hope?” she asked wearily.

“You shouldn’t have come here,” the other girl said, “I told you before, I know what I have to do.” Josie grunted from under her grip.

“If that were even close to being true, then you would have killed me the several other times you had the chance,” she said, “Or was this your plan all along? Getting me while I’m vulnerable.” 

“I really think we could have been friends,” Hope said, “But I guess that was never in the cards for us, huh?” She pulled a knife out of her pocket, but hesitated with it.

“Well what are you waiting for?” Josie asked, “Get on with it!” She was scared, and her heart was pounding, but if Hope wanted to kill her, why drag it out?

“I really tried to be better,” Hope said, and Josie could see tears forming, “I never wanted this, you know? My father was the victor, the brute. I never wanted that to be me.”  _ Was she serious? She had a knife held to Josie’s throat! _ Josie wanted to struggle against her, but if she moved even an inch, that knife would slice her. 

“Not gonna lie Hope, you haven’t been doing a really good job,” Josie croaked. Hope laughed, a big laugh that sent chills down Josie’s spine.

“You don’t say,” she said, “You know, you made a big mistake when you rescued me after the tracker jacker attack. If you’d have just let me die, it would have saved you so much trouble.”

“Then I am so so sorry,” Josie spat at the girl, “I hope you do make it out of here. I’m sure your District would love to welcome a victor who let miner trash live more than once.” 

“Screw you,” Hope told her, and as she lifted her hand to strike with the knife, Josie watched her hand shake, almost as if she were unsure. 

“What’s wrong?” Josie asked, “Am I too much of an easy target for you?” She raised an eyebrow and said, “Do you want me to run and make it a challenge?”

“Damn you!” Hope shouted at her so loud that it made Josie flinch, “What is your problem, Twelve?! Why are you making this so hard?”

“I literally just established that I wasn’t!” Josie complained, but Hope was still going,

“Why do you have to keep coming to me? I mean, Roman stabbed Loverboy, you saw me nail Alyssa in the throat with that arrow, and let’s not forget your little friend from Eleven!”

“Don’t talk about him,” Josie said.

“Why not?” Hope asked, “I mean c’mon, he was your friend, right? You two got close. And guess what? We killed him.” Josie saw pain flash in Hope’s face as she said that. She regretted it, Josie could tell. Hope swallowed and said, “And now, I’m gonna have to kill you…” 

She lifted the knife, and right when Josie thought she was going to follow through and stab her, Hope was pushed off of her and slammed against the Cornucopia by a tribute who was a lot bigger than her. Kym.

“Did you kill him?” she asked the girl.

“No,” Hope said, actually being honest since it had been Jed, but none of that seemed to matter much to Kym, who now had Hope’s knife in her hand.

“I heard you!” Kym shouted, “You killed him, didn’t you?”

“No, no,” Hope said, fear flashing her eyes, “Roman! Roman!” She didn’t get to scream again, because Kym grabbed the knife and plunged it deep into her side. Hope gagged, and began spitting out blood. Kym let go of her, and watched her slide down the side, blood getting everywhere. 

Kym grabbed her bag, then her gaze turned to Josie, who was still on the ground. She looked her up and down, and instead of striking, she said,

“Just this time Twelve, for MG.” She was turning to leave when Josie said,

“Wait!” Kym stopped and turned around. Josie could see the same pain in her eyes that she’d seen in Rafael’s when he’d said goodbye to her. The eyes of someone who’d lost someone they loved.

“MG,” Josie said, “He loved you too.” Kym paused for a second, and a look of realization crossed over her face. It left Josie wondering, had she liked him too? The small nod she gave Josie before running off answered the question for her. 

When Kym was gone, Josie knew she had to go and get the medicine to Landon, but instead her eyes went to Hope. She was still alive, but barely. It wouldn’t be long until she bled out. Hope looked at Josie and said,

“Quite an end for me, huh? Struck down while I wasn’t paying attention.” Josie knew she needed to leave. She didn’t want to be there when Hope…

“I’m sorry,” she found herself murmuring instead of running.  _ Why hadn’t Hope just killed her? She could have gotten away! _ Hope laughed,

“I bet you are. Take your crap and go, you don’t need to see this.”  _ Josie’s crap. _ Her crap that could save Landon, who had also been stabbed.  _ No, _ she told herself. Landon was her District mate, she had to help him. But Hope...Hope was Hope. 

Josie opened the bag and pulled out the medicine. The medicine would save Landon, but did he need all of it? She unscrewed it and crawled over to Hope.

“What the hell are you doing?” she asked.

“I have no idea,” Josie said. She put some of the medicine on her hands, and she rubbed it on Hope’s wounds. She knew she had to be generous, so she added more and more until it started to set. The only problem was, there was almost none left for Landon.

“Again I ask, what the hell is wrong with you?” 

“I wanted you to be okay,” Josie said quietly.  _ At the expense of myself,  _ she thought.

“Hope?” a voice called.  _ Roman. _

“You need to go,” Hope said.  _ Yeah, no shit! _ Josie stuffed the medicine in the bag, grabbed her discarded bow, and ran as fast as she could. She was gone by the time Roman rounded the Cornucopia to get to Hope. 

When Josie made it back to the cave, she found Landon in a way worse state than he’d been when she’d left. He looked at her and said,

“Oh thank God!” Josie ran to him and said,

“You’re gonna be okay. It’s not much, but I got the medicine. It’ll heal you-” Landon shook his head and said,

“It’s too late, Josie. No medicine is going to fix this.” 

“What do you me-” Josie began to ask, but was cut off when Landon started to cough up blood. That was never a good sign. Josie placed a hand on his chest and felt his heart racing. His chest wasn’t raising fast enough, and the tips of his fingers were going blue.

“Landon, stay with me,” she said, “Everything is gonna be okay.” She opened the medicine and spooned what was left on his wounds. But it wasn’t enough. She was too late. She looked to Landon, expecting fear, but instead he pushed her hair on her forehead away.

“What happened here?” he asked. Josie felt it, and realized her forehead was bleeding. It must have been from when Hope had checked her.

“I got into a fight with Hope, but that isn’t important right now. Come on, try to lie down. I can’t get to the wound well enough.” She reached in to get more medicine, but Landon stopped her, putting some on his own hand. Josie sighed in relief.

“Good thinking, you’ll probably be able to apply it bet-” she started, but ended up getting cut off again when Landon started applying it to  _ her _ forehead.

“You don’t want it to get infected,” he said hoarsely. He was losing his voice, this was bad.

“Landon stop it!” Josie snapped, swatting his hand away, “You need this more than I do.”

“It’s okay Josie,” he said, “You’re going to need your strength so you can…” he started to cough again, so Josie held him close, wincing as she felt his hot skin. He was burning up!

“Landon I’m so sorry,” Josie said as tears fell from her face. He gave her a small laugh and asked,

“For what? Staying with me when you were just fine on your own? Or apologizing because of Hope Mikaelson?” Josie frowned.  _ What? _

“You know she asked about you when we were together,” Landon said as Josie moved him so he could rest his head in her lap. If this was it, she wanted him to be comfortable.

“Oh yeah? What did she say?” Josie asked. She couldn’t hide that she was curious.

“She asked your name, so I said Josie, she asked if you could fight, I lied and said yes, and she asked if you and I were together.”  _ That explained how Hope knew her name. _ But the real thing Josie was interested in was the last part. But as Landon coughed again, she remembered that wasn’t important.

“Forget it, you need some water,” Josie said, taking the bottle.

“I’m fine,” Landon said, “In fact, I think the medicine worked. I feel a lot better.” Josie’s heart lifted a bit as she asked,

“Really, you do?” Landon nodded, “That’s amazing.”

“I know. Now will you let me tell you?” Josie blushed, knowing her curiosity was obvious.

“Yes, you can tell me,” she said.

“I told her we weren’t because I didn’t think you saw me that way. She seemed incredibly interested in that last part.”

“Really?” Josie asked, excitement building. Landon gave her a thin smile and said,

“That was when I realized it. Everything I told you earlier about feeling that way about another person, it wasn’t just about how  _ I _ felt about you. It was about how she did.” Josie felt like she’d just been shot after that statement. Hope Mikaelson  _ liked _ her?

“Landon, I-”

“Do you feel the same way?” he asked, turning to look at her.  _ No, yes, I don’t know _ , Josie thought. All she knew was that when Hope had been in trouble, she was all Josie had been thinking about. What did that say about her?

“I, I um,” she got out, but wasn’t able to say anything coherent.

“I think I’d like to rest now, if that’s okay,” Landon said. 

“Yeah, of course. You’ll need it. Then when you’re on your feet, we can get out of here,” Josie said, helping him lay down and holding him close. She was just going to lay with him for the afternoon, and when she woke up, she would no longer think about Hope Mikaelson.

It was a rude awakening as the sound of a cannon echoed through the woods. Who had it been? Girl from 5, Roman, Kym, or Hope? Josie shook Landon and said,

“Landon, someone else is down. We should go see who it is.” She got no response from her still sleeping District mate, so she shook him again, “Landon, come on!” The boy didn’t move, and Josie froze when she realized his skin wasn’t as hot as last night, “Landon?” She rolled his body over, and nearly screamed when she saw his cyanotic lips.

“No no no,” she said. She started to do compresses on his chest, the way her Mom had taught her, “Landon please, we need to go.” He didn’t respond. Josie leaned in to listen, but there was no heartbeat. A blue light shone over the cave, and Josie realized it was the screen from outside. She walked out with slow steps, and looked up to see the sky read,

“ _ District 12.” _ Landon’s tribute picture was above it. Josie shook her head and ran back inside. This wasn’t happening! This was just some trick by the game makers to make her lose morale, that had to be it. Landon had told her he was feeling better!

“Come on,” Josie said, doing the compresses again, “You’re going to be okay.” She kept pressing until she heard the cave ceiling start to rumble. She tensed up.  _ Was this an earthquake? _ She was answered when the cave ceiling started to collapse completely. As she rolled over to avoid the debris, she watched as the crane from the Capitol hovercraft came down and wrapped itself around Landon’s body.

“No, you can’t take him!” Josie yelled. She ran to the crane to pull it open, only for an electric force to push her back against the cave wall. She winced as pain from the blast coursed through her body. She guessed that was why no one ever attempted that. She watched as the crane closed over Landon’s body, and started to ascend.

“No, please!” she called out after it, but it was too late. The crane went into the hovercraft, and then disappeared into the sky. Landon was gone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I spent a while getting this chapter exactly the way I wanted it, so I hope you guys liked it! Next chapter will go back to Hope :)


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks so much for all the comments last chapter! I LOVED reading them :)

As Hope struggled to sleep that night, she was woken up by the sound of a loud cannon echoing through the air. She looked to the sky, and she felt her whole body stiffen as Josie’s District partner’s picture flashed across the sky.

“Pretty great, huh?” Roman asked, cutting in to Hope’s shock. She just shrugged, and went back to trying to get comfortable on the cold forest floor, “That means we’re the last team left. When I kill that girl from the feast, we can take out Saltzman then get out of here.” 

“Fine,” Hope murmured unenthusiastically. She didn’t really have much room to care anymore. If they made it home fine, if Josie killed her...so be it.

“What’s up with you? Why aren’t you more excited about this, we’re going home!” Roman said.

“I’m sorry I don’t get the same joy watching other kids die that you do!” Hope snapped at him, making him jump back a bit.

“Whatever,” he said, “I’m gonna keep watch. Maybe you should get some sleep. It would do wonders for your mood swings.”

“Fuck you!” Hope yelled after the boy, but he didn’t answer. She did get a joy watching him walk off with a limp. She was glad he’d never gotten a sponsor for that, and that she’d used all her medicine from Stefan on herself so he could be in pain. Served him right. Hope’s moment of smugness was overtaken again by thoughts of Josie. She’d lost her District mate, a boy who’d claimed to love her. Hope couldn’t, and wouldn’t, want to imagine how that felt.

_ Hope walked into the training room. It was the night before the Reaping, and she wanted to wish Jade luck. She looked around, but couldn’t see her. She saw Roman though. He was doing some pull ups. She gave him a small wave, but he didn’t see her. She decided to leave him to his own devices, and went into a different room to look for Jade. _

_ “Jade?” she asked, “Are you in here?”  _

_ “You just missed her, sweetie,” a voice said, startling her. She turned and saw Camille, the woman who’d won the games a few years after her father. _

_ “Hey Cami,” Hope said, “Did she just head out?” _

_ “I believe so,” Cami said, “You should be getting home. You’ll want your rest before the Reaping in the morning.” Hope shrugged and said, _

_ “I haven’t been tired,” Hope admitted, “I’m nervous without even knowing why.” _

_ “It’s okay to be nervous,” Camille said, “I know you and Jade were close. You’re worried for her, I can tell.” Hope nodded, _

_ “I just want her to be the one who comes out,” she admitted, “Is that selfish of me?” _

_ “ _ _ I suppose not,” Cami said, “But what about Roman? Would you be okay with him being the one that didn’t make it home?  _ Yes, _ Hope thought, but of course couldn’t say. _

_ “Of course not,” she backtracked, “I just...I hate how there can only be one.” _

_ “ _ _ Rules of the game,” Camille said, “You know, back when I was training your mother to compete, she asked me how it felt when I lost my District mate.” _

_ “Josh?” Hope asked, thinking about the wide eyed fifteen year old who’d accompanied Camille. There had been no eighteen year old boy that year, and as the oldest, he’d volunteered. He’d made it a week before getting skewered from behind by the girl from 4. _

_ “Yes, Josh,” Camille said, “The sad thing about Career tributes like us is we basically grew up with that District Mate. Losing them is like losing a part of yourself.” _

_ “But doesn’t it make it better that you already know if you want to win, they’d have to die?” _

_ “It should, right? But it’s still death, even if it’s just a game,” Cami said, “You’ll understand in the Quarter Quell. Who are you going with?”  _

_ “Henry Benoit,” Hope said, “He’s good, but nowhere near as good as Roman.”  _

_ “Well there you go,” Camille said, “You should count yourself lucky in that case, hmm? Better someone you know you can beat when the time comes.” _

_ “Who do you think will win this year?” Hope asked. _

_ “You know I shouldn’t say,” Camille said, “I have a deep respect for everyone I train, and I think all of them can be winners.” _

_ “Cami,” Hope almost whined, “Please?” Cami got quiet, and looked around for a moment. Once she’d deemed that they were alone, she said, _

_ “I know who I train, Hope. And so far, the only person I’ve seen who I know can beat Roman is you.” Hope’s skin crawled at that nearly grim statement.  _

_ “But I-” _

_ “Goodnight Hope. I’ll see you tomorrow,” Cami said, her tone suggesting that she’d already said too much. She left the hallway, and Hope was left by herself, utterly shell shocked. _

Hope never went back to sleep after Landon’s cannon had gone off, and was now trying to find food. Roman was horrible when it came to hunting, so Hope was their only chance. She kept her knife drawn as she quietly walked through the trees. She saw what looked like a lizard nibbling at a leaf. It didn’t look appetizing at all, but it was food. Hope threw the knife, and it hit the poor creature right in the back, killing it instantly.

“Sorry,” she said with no remorse. She picked the creature up and pulled her knife out, wincing at the slimy blood that came out with it, “Gross.” She kept the lizard away from her as she walked back to Roman, where the boy was flexing and doing moves. He had probably heard her coming back and was trying to show off.

“I brought lunch,” Hope said, tossing the lizard on the rock, and getting blood everywhere, “What have you been doing to help us?”

“Training for when the others come find us,” he said, “The girl from 11 will pay for what she did to you. Her and Saltzman.” He threw a knife at a tree, and Hope gulped at his perfect aim. She didn’t  _ want _ him to go after Josie, but it wasn’t like she could say that! He’d kill her for trying to defend a girl from Twelve. Could she take him, sure? But what would the audience say? She couldn’t kill her own partner to save a girl from another District. That was against the rules.

“Well, I think we’ll be fine for a little longer,” Hope said, “Help me cook this damn lizard. I’m getting hungry.” Roman’s face curled in distaste at the “lunch” Hope had gotten from them, but seemed to get the message that she was pissed off, so he helped her gather the wood for their small fire. Hope cooked the lizard over it, wincing at its smell. This was not going to taste good. She finished cooking it anyway, and split in half, carelessly tossing Roman his half.

“Gee thanks,” Roman said after barely catching it.

“No problem,” Hope said cheekily. She took a bite of the side of the lizard and nearly threw up, “Holy fuck that’s disgusting.”

“You couldn’t have gotten anything else?” Roman asked as he gagged on the skin. Hope shot him a glare and said,

“I’m not our gatherer. If you want food, you go and get it!” She and Roman both knew he couldn’t hunt, so they boy just scoffed and said,

“Whatever, I wasn’t that hungry anyway.” He threw his piece on the ground, and Hope rolled her eyes at him purposefully wasting their food. It wasn’t like they could go to a buffett!

“We need to split up,” he soon said. Hope frowned,

“And why would we do that?” She hated Roman, but strength in numbers, right?

“We’re not taking out tributes fast enough. You head north, I’ll go south. I’ll find Saltzman and the girl from 11. You get the girl from Five. She keeps slipping past me.”

“I can get Saltzman,” Hope said, not wanting Roman anywhere near Josie.

“You’ve kinda proven several times that you can’t,” Roman said rudely and bluntly, “Once the three cannons go off, we’ll meet back here, then go home.” 

“And if one of us doesn’t make it back?” Hope asked. He looked at her and said,

“Sucks for you, then.”  _ Cocky bastard. _ Hope curled her hands around her knife. She could do it. She could do it right now. She got a good view at his back as she aimed her knife, and was a second away from throwing it when he turned around.

“What are you doing?” he asked.

“Just checking how sharp this is,” Hope said, placing the knife back in her jacket. She couldn’t do it. Nobody at home would forgive her if she did.

“It looks fine,” Roman said, “I’m heading out. Stay safe out there.” He clipped his backpack on, and was nearly gone when Hope stopped him,

“Wait,” she said. She wanted to test something. He turned around, “I love you, Roman.” She was lying, but she needed to see his reaction. He looked nearly taken aback, like he hadn’t promised her that one day they’d be married a whopping two months ago. He awkwardly shuffled his feet and said,

“Um yeah, right. I’ll see you soon.” Hope waited for him to say something else, or even say a goodbye, but he just turned back around and walked away.

“Typical,” she grumbled, right as a storm cloud came over the arena. 

_ It had started to rain. Rain never meant anything good. Hope was keeping her head covered with only her hand, so her hair was soaking when she made it to Jade’s house. She knocked on the door, and Jade’s mother Valerie let her in. _

_ “Jade is upstairs,” she told Hope, “She’ll be glad to see you. She might need your help picking her outfit for tomorrow. She wants something special.” _

_ “Is she scared?” Hope asked as Valerie walked her to the stairs. The older woman gave Hope a somber look and said, _

_ “She understands that there are...risks involved,” it sounded like she was trying to choose her words carefully, “But she’s prepared. You’ll feel the same when it’s your turn next year.” _

_ “Right,” Hope said, “The big Quarter Quell.” Hope was terrified that her year fell on the Quarter Quell. The Capitol always added some extra challenge to spice it up, such as having four tributes from each District, which meant a lot more competition. But Hope would never say that out loud. She was going to be ready, she just needed more time. _

_ “I’ll let you and Jade talk for a bit, but then you’d best be getting home soon,” Valerie said, “That storm sounds like it’s just going to get worse.” _

_ “Thanks Ms. Tulle,” Hope said, “I promise we won’t be too long.” Valerie bid her goodnight, and Hope went up the stairs and into Jade’s room, where the girl was laying dresses out on her bed. _

_ “Hey you,” she said when she saw Hope, “Help me out. Should I go with the blue dress or the red?” Hope examined them and said, _

_ “Blue. It’s definitely your color.” _

_ “My thoughts exactly,” Jade said, hanging the dress up on her closet door, “So what brings you over here so late?” _

_ “I couldn’t sleep,” Hope admitted, “Nervous about tomorrow.” _

_ “Why?” Jade asked, “You’ve still got another year.”  _ I’m not nervous for me, _ Hope thought, thinking about her conversation with Cami. She didn’t want to scare Jade, so she said, _

_ “I don’t know. It’s just scary to see it get so close to me.” _

_ “I totally get that,” Jade said, “When I was twelve and in the academy, my eighteenth year felt so far away. But now look where we are.” _

_ “Yeah,” Hope murmured, “Hey, how crazy would it be if they actually picked me tomorrow?” _

_ “Crazy maybe, but I would be right there to volunteer for you,” Jade said, “Not that you would get picked though. I’ve made sure my name is in there as many times as it can be. I’ll be picked, no question. It’s gonna be great.” Hope felt a lump in her stomach that she fought to push down. She couldn’t be thinking like this, not now. Jade was going to the games, and she had to deal with that. _

_ “Have you talked to Roman?” Hope asked, “About strategies and that stuff?” _

_ “I mean, we talked a bit. We’d team up with the kids from 1 and 4 and all that. We’ll probably start with Districts 10 through 12. Those guys will always croak first. And then by the time the majority is gone...well, I guess we’ll have to see.”  _

_ “Who do you think will win?” Hope asked. Jade gave her a sad smile, _

_ “There’s no way I can say for sure. We’ll just have to see who the competition is.” Jade picked up the red dress and said, _

_ “You know, I think this one would look great on you. C’mere.” Hope got up from the bed and walked to the mirror with Jade, who put the dress over Hope’s body, “Oh yes, this is perfect.” _

_ “It’s okay I guess,” Hope said. It was a beautiful dress, but she knew it would look a lot better on Jade than on her. _

_ “You can wear it to one of the parties tomorrow,” Jade said, “Is your Dad still throwing his usual one before he gets on the mentor train?” _

_ “Yep, his last one,” Hope said. He had no plans to throw a party after Hope volunteered next year, “But you should keep the dress. Really, it won’t look good on me.” _

_ “You need more confidence,” Jade commented, “You’re not gonna make it in the games next year if you don’t start treating yourself a little better.” _

_ “I guess not,” Hope said, “Jade? If you were to win...what would you do next?” Jade paused from examining her dress, and the look that crossed her face showed Hope that this was a topic she’d never thought about before. _

_ “I don’t know,” she said after what felt like an eternity had passed, “I guess I would want to have a family? Or buy something nice for my Mom with the money. Something good I guess.” _

_ “You want a family?” Hope asked. That was new. _

_ “I mean, if I won I’d want one,” Jade said, “But you never know, right?” _

_ “Right,” Hope said, and they were silent for a while until Valerie broke it by calling up, _

_ “Hope! It’s time to get going, sweetheart! I don’t want your family to worry.” _

_ “I guess that’s my cue,” Hope told her friend, who nodded. _

_ “I guess. I’ll see you tomorrow, Mikaelson. Promise me you’ll come say goodbye before they put me on the train, alright?” Hope nodded, _

_ “I promise. Goodnight Jade,” she said. Jade gave Hope a hug, and Hope allowed herself to take in the scent of daffodils she always seemed irradiate. She would miss that smell. They gently pulled apart, and Hope gave Jade one last goodbye as thunder clapped outside. _

Rain was pouring down the arena at full force, and it was getting hard to see. Of course Roman would pick the literal worst time to split up. Hope sighed and hugged her jacket close around her body, wishing it wasn’t so torn up from the tracker jacker attack. As she left her camp, she picked up the pace. She  _ had _ to find Josie before Roman did.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter will go back to Josie :)


	13. Chapter 13

Josie had been running for what seemed like miles. The rain was coming down in droplets so big, they were almost burning her skin. Since the hovercraft had destroyed the caves, she’d been trying to find other places to take shelter, but there wasn’t a lot. 

Most of the trees around here burned from the fire, so they offered little protection from the pouring rain. Josie ran downhill towards the lake, but she tripped on the slippery mud, and tumbled ungracefully down. When she was done, she had mud over almost all of her body. 

Hopefully the rain would help wash it off. As Josie rubbed the rainwater all over her, she took a moment to stick her tongue out and let the cold water rush over it. Man, that felt good. She hadn’t had a sip of water since before Landon...no, she couldn’t think about Landon. She knew he wouldn’t want her to be standing around like a sitting duck. But did the dead ever really want anything?

Josie took a breath and collapsed next to a tree, letting the rain soak her to the bone. She was cold, she was hungry, and she was alone. Nothing was looking well for her right now. She pulled her empty water bottle out and let the rain fall into it. 

Rainwater was gross, but it was still water. She didn’t think going to the lake right now would be safe, especially with no District Mate to run back to if she was discovered. Kym was done giving her chances, and Hope probably was too. She just needed to stay out of sight. Then she’d fulfill all of her promises to MG. 

Josie finished collecting the water, and closed the bottle. She placed it back in the backpack and got up from the ground, wincing at all the wet mud that had gotten onto her pants during that. She picked her bow up and walked into the woods, trying and failing to shield her face from the thick raindrops. She was about to head down towards the eastern wood when she was roughly crashed into.

Josie nearly screamed as she lost her footing and tumbled down the hill. She could feel rough hands on her, yanking at her quiver in an attempt to pull it off. She tried to yank her attacker off of her, but their force was too much. As the two of them made it down the hill, she was pushed on her back, with a rough hand pressed on her neck. She looked up into the merciless eyes of Hope Mikaelson.

“You look well,” Josie coughed out, noticing that the cut on her side was barely noticeable.

“Shut up,” Hope snarled, pressing down harder, “You did this to me, you know? You’re the one who is ruining my life!”

“Then why won’t you just get rid of me?!” Josie asked, even though she had no idea why Hope thought she was ruining her life. Everytime she got mad she was coming after Josie, like what the fuck did she do? Everyone who was here just wanted to win, right?

“You are so infuriating,” Hope said, pulling her knife from her pocket. As she did so, her grip on Josie’s neck loosened, so Josie grabbed her wrist, and yanked it away. Hope yelped at the sudden movement, and Josie had to roll so Hope’s knife wouldn’t nick her. She reached for her bow, but didn’t make it in time before Hope yanked at her quiver, pulling her back into the mud. 

She pressed Josie’s face down, and Josie could feel the air being drained out of her as it sank into the cold mud. She used her leg and kicked upward, getting Hope right where she’d been stabbed.

“Gah!” Hope exclaimed, recoiling back. When her hand was off Josie, the girl quickly pulled herself up and grabbed her bow. Hope was getting back up, so instead of reaching for an arrow, Josie swung the bow as hard as she could in Hope’s face, knocking the girl down. Josie winced as Hope’s nose started to bleed profusely.

“Shit!” she heard the girl grunt. She reached for her knife, and Josie narrowly avoided it, by blocking with her bow. The knife clattered on the ground a few feet away from Josie. Both girls made a run for it, with Josie nearly making it, only to get badly checked by Hope. 

The two girls rolled on the ground, and Hope knocked the bow from Josie’s hand before landing an almighty punch to her eye. Josie yelled in pain. That was definitely going to bruise. She rolled on the ground as Hope prepared to strike again, and kicked the girl hard on the back, knocking her down. She was going to run, but Hope was ready. She tossed another knife right at Josie, getting her in the leg. 

“Dammit!” Josie exclaimed once she was done. She could see Hope getting up, so she pulled the knife out and tossed it back, only for it to lamely clank on the ground. She really was bad with a knife. Hope picked up the knife, and rubbed it in her hand. She walked over to Josie with a menacing look on her face. This was it. She was going to kill her. 

But as she approached her, Josie realized one thing. Hope had only gotten one of her legs. She used the other one to knock Hope off her feet. The shorter girl didn’t even see it coming. 

As she flipped over, Josie grabbed her leg and pulled her forward, pressing her muddy hand on Hope’s throat, and grabbing the knife before she could strike. Josie held it angrily, keeping it an inch away from Hope. She could do it, all she had to do was move the knife a little more. Hope wasn’t fighting back. In fact, she looked almost expectant.

“What are you waiting for?” she asked, “Do it!” Josie held the knife, and her hands were shaking. Could she do it? Could she take Hope’s life? She’d taken Jed’s, it wasn’t that different, right? Wrong. Josie dropped the knife, and it’s clatter seemed to echo through the arena. 

“I can’t,” she said. She released her grip on Hope’s throat, “I can’t do it.” She watched Hope pull herself to her feet. Josie knew what her next move would be. 

She’d pick up her knife, then she’d finish Josie off. And who could blame her? She certainly wouldn’t. So it was a complete surprise to Josie when instead of grabbing her knife, Hope took Josie’s face in her hands and she kissed her hard. The only thing Josie found more surprising than that was when she kissed Hope back just the same.

The last few hours had been quiet. The rain had stopped, but Hope and Josie hadn’t moved from their respective spots. Josie was sitting quietly against a tree, rubbing her bruised eye, while Hope carved random scribbles in the tree across from her. It reminded Josie of when Mom would punish her and Lizzie for fighting as kids by making them sit across from each other in silence until she came to get them. 

The only difference was that she and Hope both had deadly weapons, and she had no idea who was going to strike first. Josie looked at Hope, waiting for her to do or say something, but all she got was the sound of the knife scraping against the tree bark. Josie sighed, breaking their silence, and examined the cut in her leg. It wasn’t too deep, but it needed to be treated. Hope seemed to notice, because she called out,

“I have bandages!” Josie frowned at her,

“Huh?”

“Bandages,” Hope repeated. She stood up from the tree, and Josie tensed, holding her bow close to her. She was aiming to strike as Hope came closer, and shot one arrow right in her shin as she reached into her backpack.

“What the hell!” Hope screeched as she fell, the package of bandages falling onto the wet ground.

“I thought you were messing with me!” 

“Well clearly I wasn’t!” Hope snapped, gesturing to the bandages.

“Yeah...I can see that now,” Josie murmured as Hope clutched her leg in pain. She noticed Josie watching her and said, 

“Don’t just sit there! Help me pull it out.” Josie nodded quickly and crawled towards her, hesitating a bit as she held the arrow in her hands, “Josie!”   


“How do I know you’re not going to kill me if I take this out?”

“How do you know I won’t kill you now if you don’t pull this goddamn arrow out!” Hope nearly snarled at her, but Josie could tell the harsh tone was more from pain than anything else.

“Okay okay, my bad,” Josie said. She grabbed the arrow and pulled it out as quick as possible, almost eliciting a scream from Hope, but nothing that would get them caught. “Sorry!”

“Just get me a damn bandage,” Hope grumbled from the ground. Josie tossed her one, still keeping a distance. As Hope patched up the small hole in her leg, Josie did the same with her stab wound. The bandages felt gross since they’d touched the ground, but they were all they had. 

Josie watched Hope finish, then pull herself back up against her tree. She rested back and closed her eyes, and Josie thought she was asleep until she said, “So, you’re gay.” It wasn’t a question, just a statement. And a wrong one at that. Josie shook her head and said,

“No, I’m not g-” before she could finish, Hope said,

“My Aunt Freya is gay.” She looked up at the sky, “Love you, Aunt Freya!” Josie held in a laugh at the smile that appeared on Hope’s face after that. She looked like an actual teenager, rather than one of the Capitol’s bloodthirsty competitors.

“Well I’m not,” Josie said, “Gay.” Hope gave her a confused look.

“But you kissed me back,” she said, “That means you’re gay.”  _ Did it really? _ Mom said that gay meant into girls, but Josie had been into guys before, so she wasn’t gay, right?

“But I’ve kissed boys before,” Josie said, thinking about Landon, “And I liked it.” Josie could admit she hadn’t liked the other boy as much as he liked her, but there had been attraction. Nothing like what she felt for Hope, but it had still been  _ there _ .

“Oh,” Hope said. Josie frowned.

“Have you never-”

“I’ve kissed boys before!” Hope snapped at her, nearly making Josie reach for her bow again. She saw Hope relax against the tree, so she stopped, “I’ve just never...I’ve never loved one.” 

“But Roman-” Josie said, and was cut off when Hope said,

“Not Roman.” Things got quiet until Josie said,

“I thought the two of you were going to get married.” Hope nodded slowly,

“We were. But marriage doesn’t mean love,” she said, picking at her bandage carelessly. Josie wanted to point out that that wasn’t wise, but now wasn’t the time.

“Do you and Roman plan on getting out of here together?” Josie asked.

“That’s the plan,” Hope said, “We  _ are _ the last team standing. He’s trying to find you right now and kill you. I was supposed to be after the sneaky girl from Five.”

“She’s a tough one,” Josie said, “She evades me at every turn.” 

“Yeah,” Hope said, “I wouldn’t be surprised if she was the one who made it out of here. I wonder what the people would think.” 

“I wonder what the people think of us,” Josie commented, “It’s rare, you know? A Career tribute partnering with one of the lower districts.”

“They’re probably not thinking much of it,” Hope said, but Josie could see a flash of realization in her eyes, as if she was just starting to notice Josie’s point “And we aren’t partners, by the way.” 

“Then what are we?” Josie asked. Hope shrugged, seeming unsure, “Because I don’t know if I have to clarify this or not, but you kissed me. Why did you do that?”

“I don’t know,” Hope mumbled.

“Yeah you do,” Josie said, “If you didn’t know, you wouldn’t have let me live more than once. You didn’t stab me at the bloodbath, you didn’t tell Roman I was hiding under the bushes, and you’ve spared me here. You told me the night before in the training room that if you saw me, you’d know what to do. What did you mean by that?” 

“Shut the hell up, Josie.” Josie scoffed,

“And another thing. My name. Only my friends call me Josie,” she said, “That isn’t you.”

“Was it Landon?”   


“Of course it was, I’ve known Landon my whole life.”

“Did you love him?”

“Yes.”

“As more than a friend?” Josie paused in a retort, then slowly shook her head. 

“So you’ve never liked a guy as more than a friend?” Again, she shook her head, “Oh, so there’s been someone. Who?”

“We aren’t friends, I’m not telling you. Plus, you wouldn’t even know him.”

“I’ve liked only one person that way before,” Hope said, “That relationship is never going to work out, but the feelings were real.”

“Were they a boy or a girl?” Josie asked.

“A girl,” Hope said, “I’ve only ever felt that way about girls.”  _ Oh. _ Josie remained silent, and Hope did too. 

They were back to sitting against the tree, Hope carving the bark while Josie played with a discarded pebble on the ground. The sun was starting to come out, and Josie was enjoying the feeling of the warm sun on her skin. 

It was the best Josie felt all day, but she couldn’t enjoy it as much as she wanted to, since all she could do was think about Hope, who was quietly sharpening her knife. 

“Would you like me to go?” Josie asked the girl, who looked up and frowned at her, “Since this isn’t a partnership, maybe it’s best that we split ways.”

“Part ways, split ways sounds weird,” Hope commented.  _ Shut up, Hope! _ Josie thought exasperatedly. God, she could be annoying sometimes! 

“Whatever,” Josie said, “I’m heading out. If my cannon goes out, nice knowing you, I guess.” She got up to leave, and was almost gone when Hope called out,

“Wait!” Josie looked at Hope who was still sitting against the tree, but looking at Josie with a more determined look in her eyes, “What if we didn’t split ways?”

“I’m listening,” Josie said, walking closer to her, but keeping her bow ready.

“I say we form a truce. Then if we end up as the last two, we duke it out then,” Hope said, “What do you say?”

Josie didn’t feel comfortable with this. For all she knew, Roman himself had sent Hope to trick her, to get her guard down. On the other hand, what did Josie have to lose? She wanted to win for MG and Lizzie, and partnering with Hope gave her the best chance at that. Plus, if she lost, it would give some pride to her District to see someone come in second, right? 

“Okay,” Josie said. She walked over to Hope and helped her up, “Truce it is.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you guys liked this one! Next chapter will go back to the Capitol :)


	14. Chapter 14

The mood in the Capitol when Landon’s cannon went off was unlike anything Stefan had ever seen. Sponsors were in a rage, fights were breaking out, and all Katherine’s attempts to calm people down were going nowhere. The only person Stefan hadn’t seen yet that day was Klaus. He’d checked the District 2 apartment, but nothing. He’d checked every room in the building except the training center, so he was now riding the elevator down, leaving all the fighting behind him.

The elevator opened, and he saw Klaus down there, working with a knife. It seemed Hope had inherited his talent for a knife, since Stefan had seen her make similar moves to the one Klaus was making right now. When it was obvious that the older man wasn’t going to acknowledge Stefan, he cleared his throat.

“Something bothering you?” he asked the man.

“What gives you that impression?” Klaus asked.

“You’re hiding,” Stefan said, “People hide when they’re upset.” Klaus huffed and said,

“I’m not upset. My daughter is okay, I have no reason to be worried.”

“Your daughter is okay at the expense of Landon. Josie chose somebody else over her own District Mate. This isn’t good, Klaus.”

“I don’t really see how this is my problem, Mr. Salvatore,” he said.

“Josie saved  _ your _ daughter,” Stefan said, “Any heat she’s going to face will reflect on Hope too. And I know what your district is like. If your daughter makes it out, they aren’t going to receive a victor that won due to a girl from  _ Twelve _ , of all districts, helping her.

“My daughter will kill Josette,” Klaus said simply, “And when she and Roman return victorious, that’s all the district will see.” 

“And if Josie makes it out?” Stefan asked.

“That’s never going to happen,” Klaus said, tossing a knife right into the heart of a dummy, “With Mr. Kirby’s demise, my daughter and Roman are the only team left. She has the advantage. I will be seeing her again. I can’t say the same about you and your girl.” 

“Anyone ever tell you that you’re the worst?”

“Oh all the time, my daughter more than most,” Klaus said, “But she’s trained her whole life for this. She will get her head back in the game, and soon the sponsors will be fawning all over her.”

“The sponsors were “fawning” over Josie and Landon,” Stefan reminded the man, “They see Hope as someone who got in the way of them living happily ever after. Doesn’t that worry you?” Stefan could tell from the falter in Klaus’s posture that it did. But, the man regained his stance.

“Not at all. My daughter is going to win, I assure you that.”

“Oh, so you’re going to help her now?”

“She doesn’t need me,” Klaus said, throwing another knife. It didn’t get as close, but it was still a fatal wound, “She has her weapons, she has Roman. She’ll be fine.” He went to pull the knives out of the dummy and asked, “What does Josette have again?”

“You’re an ass,” Stefan said, “And you’re wrong.”

“We’ll see,” Klaus said. He finished taking all the knives, and carelessly tossed them on the weapons table by the side, giving Stefan no regard as he left the room.

Stefan usually liked being proven right-no-he  _ loved _ it. But when he saw the anger on Klaus’s face as Hope kissed Josie on the TV, he knew being right wasn’t worth it.

“Mr. Mikaelson,” one of the sponsors was asking him, “What are your thoughts on your daughter’s actions?” Klaus kept walking, his face stone cold.

“No comment,” he barked to the man. Stefan was surprised he hadn’t done worse. He looked to the TV, where Hope and Josie were no longer kissing, but sitting against opposite trees. He figured Josie would be okay for the time being, so he followed Klaus out of the room.

“Klaus? Klaus!” Stefan called after him, and stopped the elevator before the man could close it in his face, “I just want to talk.”

“About what?” he asked in annoyance as he stepped out, “About how my daughter has yet again let love rule over logic in every fucking decision she is making!”

“That would be a good place to start,” Stefan said, “What do you mean, again?” 

“That’s none of your concern,” Klaus said, his eyes darkening, “My daughter has damned herself. Partnering up with District 12  _ scum _ instead of-”

“You watch who you call scum,” Stefan said. He could tell Klaus sensed his anger when he saw a smirk spread over the man’s face.

“You heard me, Mr. Salvatore,” Klaus said, “Josette is  _ scum _ , and she isn’t any better than your pathetic excuse for a brother.” Stefan saw red in Klaus’s taunting eyes, and with the anger combined with the two bottles there was absolutely nothing stopping him from clocking the older man straight in the jaw. Klaus staggered back, at a loss for words.

“Alright,” he said after a moment passed, “If that’s how you want to play it…” He rolled his shoulders, and came at Stefan, holding nothing back. He slammed Stefan against the wall, and Stefan was nearly taken aback by the sheer force of the man. No weapons, not even a running start. Just brute force. 

He reared back, and grabbed Klaus’s arm, pulling it back, and attempted to flip the man over, but Klaus had clearly continued working out since his games. Stefan had not. He easily grabbed Stefan and slammed him to the ground. He then hit him over and over again until he got tired. Stefan’s vision was blurred from where Klaus’s punches had collided with his face, but he could hear just fine.

“Josette is going to hell,” he growled at Stefan, “Hopefully one day, you’ll join her.” He turned on his heel, and Stefan could have let him go, but he wasn’t done.

“If Josie is going to hell,” he coughed out, “You can be damn sure your daughter is going down with her.” Klaus stopped, then he turned. It wasn’t long before he was storming back to Stefan, and kicking him straight in the face. The room went black soon after.

Hayley was taking some shirts down from a clothes line when her sister in law, Rebekah, came into her backyard, a concerned look on her face.

“What’s going on?” Hayley asked.

“Have you not been watching?” she asked. Hayley shook her head, “Well you’d better. Come on.” She took Hayley’s hand and led her out of the yard, “How have you been getting away with not watching?”

“Please, we all know those Peacekeepers are afraid of Klaus,” Hayley said, “They wouldn’t dare threaten me if it meant they were to deal with him.”

“If only we could all use that to our advantage,” Rebekah said, “It’s getting messy. I can’t believe you haven’t been watching!”

“What the hell have I missed?” Hayley asked as she entered the plaza. The same plaza she hadn’t entered since her daughter was taken from her all those weeks ago. Rebekah joined the rest of the family, who was waiting near the side. Her brother in law Elijah had his head in his hands, while her sister in law Freya was biting her lip nervously. 

“Look,” Rebekah said, pointing to the screen. Hayley looked up and saw her daughter in a full on fist fight with the girl from twelve. They fought almost like children, kicking and scratching at each other, throwing the other into the mud. 

“The boy from 12 just died,” Elijah said, “And Hope just split from Mr. Sienna.” 

“So she’s going to kill Josette,” Hayley said, “Why are we worried?”

“Josette may have gotten the highest score in her evaluation, but she lacks our Hope’s years of training,” Elijah said, “She shouldn’t be blocking all of these moves. Hope is  _ letting _ her.” Hayley looked back to the TV and realized Elijah was right. When Josie kicked Hope, instead of blocking her leg, she lamely moved out of the way, and not fast enough since she was knocked down. On the ground, Josette hovered over her, holding the knife high. And Hope goaded her on. She didn’t even fight back. Almost like she didn’t want to. Hayley gulped. 

“You don’t think she’d…” Rebekah started, and ended up being right, because Josette dropped the knife. The crowd was silent as it fell, and Hayley could hear the sound of metal against dirt ringing loudly through her ears.

“I can’t,” Josette said, her hand shaking, “I can’t do it.” Hayley let out a sigh of relief. Her daughter stood, and Josette made no move for the knife. Hope could easily take her out now.

“Very nice,” Elijah murmured, “Now finish her.” Hayley clasped her hands together, praying Hope would just get it done. The knife was right there. Just one throw or one cut. Then Josette would be gone, and all the fear she and Klaus had been feeling since that score came out would disappear.

“Come on baby,” Hayley murmured, “You can do it.” Only she couldn’t. Hope didn’t grab the knife. She took Josie’s face into her hands, and she kissed her. She kissed her hard. The silence in the plaza stopped, and it was soon overrun with conversation.

“Did you see that?” one mother asked her husband.

“She’s fraternizing with the competition!” a man exclaimed with a huff.

“She’s sick just like her Aunt Freya!” one of the boys Hope went to school with said. Hayley turned to her sister in law, and saw the woman visibly stiffen. 

“Freya…” she started.

“Don’t,” the woman said, “Don’t say anything.” All eyes were now on their family, so Elijah cleared his throat and said,

“Unless you have something you would like to say to us directly, do return to your business. Or else I will have to make some calls that I know nobody here will appreciate.” Elijah was a Peacekeeper, just like Hayley’s brother in law, Finn. People knew not to mess with him. The families quickly turned back around, whispering quietly amongst themselves.

“Thank you, brother,” Freya said.

“Do not mistake my actions as a sign of support,” Elijah said coldly, startling Hayley, “Our niece is making a mistake. She’ll be lucky Mr. Sienna doesn’t kill her himself.”

“Elijah!” Rebekah exclaimed. 

“He’s right,” Freya said, “Josette is from a different district. Hope is endangering herself by teaming up with her, and embarrassing herself by acting this way.”

“You can’t possibly mean that,” Hayley said, but Freya didn’t answer. She just turned around and left, keeping her head down.

“I’ll talk to her,” Rebekah said.

“No, let me,” Hayley said, shooting one last glare Elijah’s way. She left the square, and followed Freya back to the Victor’s Village, where she was in Hayley’s kitchen, washing her face. Hayley could see the beginnings of tears forming around her eyes.

“Freya?” Hayley asked, “What happened back there?” Her sister in law wiped her face with the towel by the side of the sink and said,

“I should have known. Hope came to me a few weeks ago...I got a feeling, but I didn’t do anything about it. And now…” Hayley frowned.

“Wait, what are you talking about?” she asked. Freya swallowed, crossed her arms and said,

“About a month ago, Hope came to talk to me…”

_Freya_ _was working at the stone molding factory when her niece joined her, still sweating from a training session with Camille._

_ “Aunt Freya, can I talk to you about something?” she asked, sitting on the bench across from her. _

_“_ _Of course, honey,” Freya said, “Anything you need.”_ _She watched as her niece wrung her hands nervously, so she continued with, “We’ll keep this between us, alright?”_

_ “Promise?” Hope asked, and Freya nodded. _

_ “Promise,” she said, “What’s on your mind, kiddo?” _

_ “It’s stupid,” Hope said, studying her feet. Freya smiled and said, _

_ “I bet it’s not. Come on, tell me.” Hope looked up at her with a pained expression on her face. Freya had never seen anything like it, especially from her niece, “Hey, whatever it is, I promise it’s not as big a deal as you think. Did something bad happen? Are you in some kind of trouble?” _

_ “No,” Hope said, “At least, I don’t think so.” She got quiet again.  _

_ “Just tell me what’s up,” Freya said, putting her mold down, “I’m all yours, no judgement.” Hope gave her a small smiled, which faded as she asked, _

_ “When you met Aunt Keelin, how did you know you were in love with her?” A smile spread across Freya’s face as she said, _

_ “Oh, so this is about Roman, isn’t it?” Hope blushed, “Are things getting more serious?” _

_ “He asked me to marry him,” Hope said, and Freya’s smile left. _

_ “What?” she asked. Hope nodded and said, _

_ “Right as training ended. He got down on one knee and everything.” _

_ “Oh did he now?” Freya asked, and Hope nodded, “And you said…” _

_ “That I would think about it,” Hope said, “I mean, he’s going away for his games in a month. What if he doesn’t come back, you know? And then there’s my year next year…” _

_ “Not to mention you’re seventeen years old,” Freya said. _

_ “That too,” Hope said, “So...my question?” _

_ “Right,” Freya said, “I mean, when you meet the right person, you just kind of know, I guess. With your Aunt Keelin, I knew there wasn’t anyone else I wanted to be with, and when I found out she felt the same way, I knew it was meant to be. I bet your parents felt the same way, too.”  _

_“You’re misunderstanding me,” Hope said, which made Freya frown. Her niece looked her right in the eye and asked, “How did you know, out of every guy in the world, that_ Aunt Keelin _was the one?”_ _Freya had been confused until Hope said the word. Guy._

_ “You’re asking how I knew, that I was…” Freya started to ask, and Hope nodded, “Oh.” _

_ “Yeah,” Hope said, “Oh.” _

“How could you never tell me this, Freya?” Hayley angrily asked her sister in law.

“I promised Hope that I wouldn’t!” she exclaimed, “Plus, when she said yes to Roman a week later, I guess I thought something had changed.”

“And you didn’t even think to ask her?” Hayley asked. 

“Of course I did,” Freya said, “It’s just that with all the abuse I went through when Keelin and I first got together...I mean, c'mon, you heard that guy in the square! I didn’t want her to feel that pain, and when she said yes to Roman, I guess I was just relieved that she wouldn’t have to.”

“And clearly not concerned enough that she was faking!” Hayley snapped in annoyance. She ran a hand through her hair and asked, “Who do you think she was talking about, anyway?”

“Are you kidding?” Freya asked, “Who do you think?” Hayley hadn’t wanted to think that, but with Freya’s confirmation, it was hard not to.

“Why didn’t I see it sooner?” she asked, “Or why didn’t...why didn’t she  _ come _ to me?”

“There are some things we just can’t talk to our parents about,” Freya said, “And Hope only went to me because let’s face it, I’m me.” 

“Yeah, you’re pretty great sometimes,” Hayley said. Freya laughed and said,

“I guess I am. If it helps, she’s not going to think I’m that great when she finds out I told you all of this.” Hayley gave her a grim look and said,

“Do you think she’ll be the one to make it back?” 

“I know her odds aren’t great, and the sponsors are definitely going to be mad about this, but I know our girl. She always comes out on top.”

“What if Roman finds out she showed Josie mercy?” Hayley asked, “What if he kills her himself?” Freya shook her head.

“He’s not going to do that. Josette is probably in huge trouble for letting her district mate die. Roman won’t want that type of heat.”

“What about the girl from 11? She almost killed her once,” Hayley argued.

“Which is why we should probably be glad Hope has teamed up with Josette. She saved her then, she’ll do it again.” 

“How do you know that?” Hayley asked.

“I just do,” Freya replied, “Look.” She pointed to the TV. Hayley hadn’t even realized it was on. Hope and Josette were both talking now.

“So you’re gay?” Hope was asking the other girl.

“Oh dear God,” Hayley said. Sometimes Hope could be too blunt. She was like her father that way. Josette looked embarrassed, and was attempting to defend herself when Hope continued with, 

“My Aunt Freya is gay. Hi, Aunt Freya!” She looked right at the camera when she said that. Hayley watched Freya smile as she said,

“Hi, baby.” The two girls continued to talk, and Hayley stiffened as Hope confessed to the entirety of Panem that she didn’t love Roman.

“Oh no,” she murmured. She turned to Freya, and frowned at the woman’s smile, “What?”

“She doesn’t love Roman,” Freya said, “She’s with Josette right now. This might end up being the best thing that could happen for her.”

“Because?” Hayley asked.

“Think about it,” Freya said, “The one constant throughout these games has been that Hope and Josette have been protecting each other. The bloodbath, the tracker jacker nest, the feast. They never turned on each other once.”

“I guess not,” Hayley said.

“And now that they’re teaming up, they’ll have each other’s backs. I mean, look at them.” Hayley turned her attention back to the TV, where Hope was saying,

“I say we form a truce. Then if we end up as the last two, we duke it out then.”

“This is not good,” Hayley said.

“Okay,” Josette was saying, “Truce it is.”

“This is the worst thing that could ever happen, how could you say otherwise?” 

“Let’s just say that I have faith,” Freya said. Hayley in no way shared her sentiment.

When Stefan opened his eyes, he could see Katherine standing over him, glaring. Stefan went to rub his eyes, and grunted in pain.

“Ugh, what the hell!” he exclaimed.

“You deserve that,” Katherine said, “Your childness this afternoon just cost Josette any sponsors we’ve tried to find for her, and now she’s teaming up with a Career tribute which is causing a ton of unrest in the Capitol, Landon is dead-”

“So glad that was your  _ third _ thought-”

“Shut up!” Katherine snapped, “Do you have anything to say for yourself?”

“Just that I hope Klaus is in a worse state than me,” he said.

“Quite the contrary, Mr. Salvatore,” came the man’s annoying voice in Stefan’s ear. He pushed himself up, and turned to see Klaus lounging around, drinking whiskey.  _ Stefan’s _ whiskey.

“Get the hell out of my apartment,” he said.

“I will,” Klaus said, “But there’s something I thought we should talk about first.” He moved to his jacket, where he pulled out a tape, “Ms. Pierce, a moment please?”

“I’ll be right in the other room,” Katherine said, “I better not hear any fighting while I’m gone.” She turned to leave, giving Stefan one last glare as she did.

“What do you want, Klaus?” Stefan asked.

“To show you something,” he said, “You know how when you win, they give you the tape recording of those games.”

“I do,” Stefan said. His tape was buried in a storage box somewhere in his house. 

“I wanted to show you the end of mine,” Klaus said. He put the tape in the player by the TV, and Stefan stiffened.

“Is this some sick kind of joke?” he asked, his voice raising.

“I promise you, it isn’t,” Klaus said, “Just watch.” He played the tape and forwarded it to the end. Stefan was about to hit Klaus so hard when he continued with, “It’s just this small part.” It was near the end of the games. Klaus and Damon were fighting viciously. Klaus was holding the weapon that he would soon use to kill his brother.

“Why are you showing this to me?” Stefan asked.

“Because I know you didn’t watch them. You weren’t of age,” Klaus said, “But this...this I need you to see.” Stefan looked at the TV, and was surprised to see Damon on top of Klaus, holding a knife. Klaus wasn’t fighting back.

“He can make the kill shot,” Stefan murmured.

“Indeed,” Klaus said. Stefan watched in horror as his brother hesitated, before eventually dropping the knife and shaking his head.

“I can’t do it,” came Damon’s broken voice, “I’m sorry.”

“He showed you mercy,” Stefan said as Klaus shut the TV off.

“Yes,” he said, “He did.” There was a silence that followed, “Hope doesn’t know. Hayley and I thought it would be best not to tell her.”

“But now she showed Josie mercy, just like Damon showed you.”

“She did,” Klaus said, “And if things were to go the same for her then…”

“You think that if it does come down to her and Josie, she’ll show mercy, and Josie will be the one to come home.”

“I do,” Klaus said, “And Hayley does too.”

“What?” Stefan asked. Klaus put his head in his hands and said,

“There’s a lot that you don’t know. You and Hope both.” He sighed and said, “It’s a long story.” Stefan eyed the bottle of whiskey on the counter and picked it up.

“I’ve got time,” he said.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Back to the games next chapter until they're over :) but what Klaus tells Stefan will definitely be brought up later :)


	15. Chapter 15

After agreeing to their truce, it seemed like all the remnants of rain had disappeared from the arena. Josie saw that as a good sign, though she still worried that Hope would eventually stab her in the back. The other girl had been mostly quiet as they walked through the woods, and the only sound that came was from their footsteps crunching on the leaves. They eventually made it to the lake, and as Josie filled her bottle, she realized Hope didn’t have one. She just cupped water in her hand and drank some. 

“You can share this with me if you’d like,” Josie said, gesturing to the bottle.

“Oh,” Hope said, “Thanks, but uh, I think I’m good now.” 

“That’s cool,” Josie said, “Just let me know then.” She placed the water bottle back in her backpack, nearly missing the soft smile Hope gave her at that statement. It was a pretty smile that she’d never seen on the girl before. But it vanished almost as fast as it came.

“We need to find food,” Hope said, “The last thing I ate was half a lizard, I’m starving.” 

“A lizard?” Josie asked, “Where did you even find one of those?” Josie went to the woods by her District every day, and not once had she ever seen a lizard.

“Just crawling around,” Hope said, “You hunt, right? Try and find us something good. I’ll get wood together to make a fire.”

“Not too much,” Josie said, “We don’t want to call too much attention to ourselves.” Hope nodded before heading off to gather wood. Josie went in the opposite direction, keeping her eyes and ears ready in case any small creatures came her way. She was walking into a patch of wood that was burnt from the fire when she heard the sounds of a creature scurrying. She slowed her step and pulled an arrow out of her quiver. 

She didn’t see anything on the ground, but then a flash of movement up a tree showed her a squirrel climbing up the branches. Josie aimed her bow, and hit it right in the side. It landed with a thud on the ground below. She picked it up, pulled the arrow out, and examined its body. It was a measly little guy. It was barely enough to feed her, let alone her and Hope. Food was growing scarcer and scarcer. Josie knew the game makers were searching for ways to end it. And whether it came from them killing each other or all starving to death, they would be victorious. They always were.

_ “Josette Lucas Saltzman, get out here right now!” Josie, who’d been smoothing the edges on her new bow, frowned. What was she upset about? _

_“What did you do?”_ _Lizzie asked from the bathroom._

_ “Beats me,” Josie said. She slid her bow under her bed and went into the kitchen, where she saw her Mom glaring at her, with a piece of paper in her hands. _

_ “Care to explain this?” Caroline nearly shouted, slamming the paper on the table. _

_ “No?” Josie asked, not knowing what the paper was. She picked it up and froze at the sight of her signature on the dotted line. Ugh, they said they wouldn’t tell her Mom! _

_ “How did you-” she started, and was cut off with, _

_ “I had to drop something off and I was informed that my twelve year old child signed up without even telling me!” _ _   
_

_ “You lost your job!” Josie said, “We haven’t had more than a few bites to eat in days! Yes, I know it means my name will get entered more, but it’s worth it, right?” _ _   
_

_ “Not to me!” Caroline did shout this time, her voice ringing through Josie’s ears, “Not if it means your name is in there more than it should be.” _

_ “Well it’s too late now,” Josie said, “I signed it, no take backs.”  _

_ “No,” Caroline said, “Get your shoes, we’re going down there right now and saying it was a mistake. Most kids who sign up are older, so hopefully they’ll believe you.” _

_ “No,” Josie said as her Mom grabbed her jacket. _

_ “Excuse me?” the older woman asked. _

_ “I said no,” Josie said, “I’m not changing my mind, we need the food.”  _

_ “Josette, you aren’t thinking,” Mom said, “Four slips right now isn’t that big, but what about when you’re eighteen and there’s over thirty? What if they pick your name?” Josie felt fear in her body for the first time after that. She couldn’t imagine getting picked. Seeing the pain in her Mom and Lizzie’s eyes. Not being able to see their reactions when she was brought home in a box. It almost made her regret her decision. Almost. Better a death in the games than a death from starvation, right? _

_ “I  _ was _ thinking,” she said, “I made the right decision, I know it.” Josie expected her Mother to yell at her some more, so was given a surprise when the woman just threw the paper on the table and shut herself in her room. She didn’t come out until the next morning. _

Josie heard the squawking of a bird.  _ More food! _ She pulled the arrow out of the squirrel, and slung the scrawny creature over her back as she aimed at the bird. It was a small robin, pecking at a nut in the trees. Josie fired before it could fly away, and it fell with an unceremonious thud. While food had been growing scarcer, it  _ had _ been getting easier to catch. Josie picked the bird up, and carried the two creatures back to her camp with Hope, where the shorter girl was placing down wood for the fire.

“Took you long enough,” was all she said when she saw Josie.

“The food is running out,” Josie said, “I feel like it won’t be long until there are no animals left.” Hope frowned and said,

“What will we do after that?”

“We forage for berries,” Josie said as she grabbed a stick from the ground to cook the animals on, “Will you hurry up and light that, we don’t have all day!” 

“Alright, alright. God, you’re demanding,” Hope said. She rubbed the wood together until a small flame ignited, and blew on it so it would spread. Josie finished skinning and spearing the animals, and placed them on top of the fire to cook. As Hope watched, she asked,

“Do you do this often?” Josie shook her head,

“I kind of learned how to at the beginning of all this,” she admitted, “I knew how to hunt though. I’d sell animals at home for food money.” 

“To who?” Hope asked. Josie, worried that the Capitol would prosecute anyone she said by name, replied with, “Just people in town.”

“Hmm,” Hope said, “My Mom bought me food, and I ate it. Simple as that.”

“We used to live like that. Then my Mom lost her job around the time of our first Reaping, so I signed up for extra rations. That meant my name was in-”

“I know what it means!” Hope snapped, cutting her off. Josie winced at how harsh her voice was. It seemed a little uncalled for. District 2 was rich, Josie had just assumed they didn’t know! But she decided she wasn’t going to test the more dangerous girl, and went back to her cooking.

“I’m sorry,” Hope said a few minutes later, breaking their cold silence.

“Excuse me?” Josie asked.

“You heard me,” Hope said, very unwilling to repeat herself. Josie hid her small smile and said,

“It’s okay.” She finished cooking the food, and allowed Hope to have the bird while she took the squirrel. She didn’t like the squirrel meat as much, but Hope was more used to “luxury.” They ate in silence, and when they finished, Josie frowned as Hope kicked her shoes, jacket, and shirt off. She was reaching for her pants when Josie exclaimed, 

“What are you doing?”

“I’m covered in dirt, I need to wash it off,” the girl said as simply, “There’s a small stream down there. I won’t be gone long.”

“Hope, that is not safe!” Josie snapped at her, “Someone could catch you, and you don’t have any of your weapons with you.” She shrugged and said,

“I have you.” She finished unzipping her pants and shook them off, “I’ll be right back.” Josie could feel her heart racing at the sight of Hope’s exposed body. She was really doing that in front of the entirety of Panem! Josie wasn’t sure if it was stupid or bold. The girl slid through the fronds of grass, and Josie heard a splash a few moments later. 

She wondered if she should follow her. If a tribute came, she’d be able to protect her a lot better if they were close. Yeah, that made sense. Josie grabbed her bow and Hope’s discarded items before going to the stream and positioning herself close to it. She could see Hope standing in water that went to her shoulders, and she was running it through her hair. Josie could see the scar from the fight with Alyssa on her shoulder. The wound had healed, but that scar would last forever.

“Enjoying the show?” Hope asked. Josie blushed and said,

“No! I’m keeping you safe, like a partner does.”

“I’m plenty safe,” Hope said, “Come on in. You could use it.” Josie frowned at her dirt covered body, wishing Hope wasn’t right.

“That’s dumb,” she said, “If we both get in, we could get attacked.”

“There are no tributes around here,” Hope said, “Roman went the opposite way, if the girl from Five came, I don’t think she can use a weapon, and the girl from Eleven…” Josie watched her trail off at the mention of Kym. Josie knew she was afraid of the other girl, she just wasn’t showing it, “Well...we’ll be safe here. Come on, it isn’t too cold.”

“I’m keeping the quiver,” Josie said, not wanting to go in without a weapon. She kicked her muddy shoes off and placed her jacket on the rock next to Hope’s. She took Hope’s knives out of her jacket, and buried them along with Josie’s bow in the clumps of dirt surrounding the lake. 

She slid her quiver off to remove her shirt, leaving her in the Capitol undershirt that she noticed had gotten really worn down over the past few weeks. She put her quiver back on and quietly undid the button and zipper on her pants, wincing as she shed the material and the cold wind hit her legs. She prayed Hope hadn’t been messing with her about the water.

She moved from the grass into the water, and was pleasantly surprised to see that Hope had been telling the truth. The water wasn’t steaming, but it wasn’t freezing either.

“It’s good, right?” Hope asked as Josie swam closer to her. She nodded,

“Yeah, it’s great.” She could feel the water from the lake tugging at the dirt on her skin. She only wished she had soap. Or a towel. Hope laid back on the water, allowing herself to float. This was the first time Josie really saw the scar where Kym had stabbed her. Another one she’d probably carry with her forever. It was red and jaggedy, showing that the cut had been sloppy, though effective. Hope would have died without Landon’s medicine.

“You should try to float, too,” Hope said, “It’s relaxing.”

“How can you relax here?” Josie asked, splashing some water over her head. Her heart was racing thinking about how they weren’t paying attention to the arena.

“Because it’s fun,” Hope said, swishing the water, “Don’t you wanna have fun?”

“Not as much as I want to survive,” Josie said before splashing the water in her face, wincing as the water touched the small cuts, making them sting.

“I mean everyone wants to survive,” Hope said, “But if we’re going to be characters in their televised event, why be like everyone else?”  _ She wasn’t wrong. _

“I guess you’re right,” Josie said aloud, “How do we be different?”

“You start by floating,” Hope said, “You just...lay back. And you watch the sky.” Josie leaned back and allowed herself to float on the water.

“And then what?” She asked as she moved closer to Hope. Hope placed her hand on Josie’s shoulder and said,

“Then, you get closer.” Her hand moved from Josie’s shoulder down to her chest, making her tense up. Not because she was uncomfortable, but because it felt good.

“And after that?” Josie asked, trying to keep her heart rate steady. She could hear Hope move, and watched as the girl rolled back into a standing position, pushing her messy wet locks out of her face. She did the same, nearly choking as her whole head went under at the turn. When she was back up right, her braid had come more undone. 

She pulled at the tie, letting her hair fall at her shoulders. The weeks in the arena had made it lose all of its volume, but it had retained some thickness.

Hope was now running her hand through Josie’s hair, almost massaging her scalp. Josie craned her head, allowing Hope’s hand to move down, and eventually she felt the softness of Hope’s lips on her neck as she planted soft kisses in a line.

“Hope…” Josie said. She needed to stop her, but she didn’t want to.

“Something wrong?” Hope asked.  _ Yes, we can’t be doing this _ , Josie thought. But instead of speaking her thoughts, she shook her head.

“No, nothing.” Hope smiled and continued her line, moving down to the collarbone. Josie took Hope’s shoulders and moved to kiss the girl, allowing Hope to stop so their lips could connect. Josie didn’t know much about moments like this, but she knew enough to know that she was in control. 

She held Hope tighter, and moved her in the water, allowing the other girl to move again from her lips and down her neck, which was enough to make Josie gasp out loud. She didn’t know what was happening in her body right now, but she knew she liked it. She liked it a lot.

“Is this too different?” Hope asked.

“No,” Josie said, “It’s perfect.” She kissed Hope back, using more force and entangling her hands with the other girl’s. They pushed at each other hard, but it didn’t feel competitive. It felt like they both wanted it, and Josie could feel Hope move her hands to caress Josie’s sides. Josie sank into the water and continued to let Hope shower her with affection, giving her more warmth than her jacket ever did in the freezing cold arena.

It was a quiet affair as the two girls slipped their clothes back on a few moments later. The sun was starting to set, so they knew it wouldn’t be safe to stay in the water. Josie unburied the weapons while Hope got dressed, and placed all the knives on the rock for Hope to sort through. As she cleaned the dirt off her bow, Hope came up to her with her wet hair dripping all over the rock.

“We better hurry,” she said, “Roman always came to get water at night, and he won’t spare you if he sees you.” Josie nodded and said,

“I’m ready. Are you?”

“I am now,” Hope said after placing all her knives back in her jacket. She slid it back on and said, “We should abandon our old camp. I don’t want to stay in the same place for too long.” 

“Good idea,” Josie said, “I’m gonna get some more water before we leave.” She pulled the bottle out of her backpack and took the water from the lake. Once it was filled, she packed it up, and got up from the ground, sliding her shoes back on. She and Hope walked through the woods in silence, until Hope eventually said,

“I am, you know. In case you couldn’t tell from before.”

“Huh?” Josie asked, not getting what was happening.

“You know,” Hope said, then she lowered her voice, “ _ Gay. _ ” 

“Oh,” was all Josie could say. What else  _ was _ there to say? The two of them walked down the path, and Hope asked,

“I haven’t known for that long. Only for a few years. I was fourteen, I think? Yeah, fourteen. It was one of the girls I trained with. I hoped she felt the same way, but…” As she trailed off, Josie noticed for the first time, Hope was being open with her. But why? Hope was going to kill her anyway when the time came to it, so why kiss her? Why try to be civil? None of it made sense.

“What about you? You said there was someone,” Hope said.

“That’s none of your business,” Josie said, moving a branch away with her bow. The branches were getting longer down the trail.

“But I thought we were partners,” Hope said, “Don’t partners tell each other that kind of stuff?” Josie turned to glare at Hope and said,

“I told you it’s not your business. So just drop it.” Hope seemed a little shocked at Josie’s change in tone, so she stopped asking questions. They found a clearing that would function as a camp for the night, and Josie sat down to catch her breath. They’d been walking for a while. The sun was about to completely set, so Hope pulled surrounding firewood into a pile and slowly started making a fire.

“Nothing too big,” Josie said, “We don’t want to attract attention.”

“I know what I’m doing,” Hope said crossly, but she did get rid of some of the wood. As Hope worked with the fire, Josie pulled her hair back into the braid Dorian had put it in, tying it back as tight as she could. It was nice to get it out of the way. 

“How’d you learn to do that?” Hope randomly asked.

“Do what?” Josie asked.

“Braid,” she said, “My Mom knew how, but I don’t…”

“Oh, my first grade teacher taught me,” Josie said, thinking about Ms. Bennett. She wondered what she was up to now. Was she watching Josie right now, hoping she’d survive? It was weird, but Josie hoped she was. It would mean she cared.

“Oh,” was all Hope said as she ran a hand through her messy auburn locks. Josie started to understand what Hope was trying to ask, so she said,

“Do you want me to show you?”

“I mean, you don’t  _ have _ to,” Hope said, but Josie could tell she wanted her to. She didn’t want to drag this out too long, so she offered.

“It’s no problem,” she said. She walked over to Hope and sat next to her. She took the girl’s hair in her hands and said, “You start by separating your hair into three strands, then you just braid them over each other. It takes some practice to do by yourself, but once you learn, it’s not that hard.”

“If it’s hard for me to do it,” Hope said, “Then can you just braid it?” She turned and gave Josie an almost pleading look, so she said,

“Um yeah, sure.” Instead of doing the braid like her own, Josie opted to move the braid into a half up down. That was how Mom would do her hair before the parties after the Reaping. Josie remembered watching her and thinking how she was so pretty. She was probably shaking her head at Josie right now, wondering how she could be so stupid. She was braiding her competition’s hair!

“Is something wrong, Josie?” Hope said. Josie shook her head.

“No, nothing,” she said. She continued with the braid, then used the tie to pull it together. She smoothed Hope’s wet hair down and said, “There. All done.” Hope felt her hair and said,

“Thank you, I bet it looks nice.”  _ Yes it does _ , Josie thought, but had more sense than to say it out loud. She moved away, grabbed her bow and said,

“I’ll take the watch tonight. You should get some sleep.” She dumped some water on the fire until it fizzled out and said, “We’ll forage in the morning, and then we-” she never got to finish her thoughts, because she soon heard the sound of Hope’s slowed breathing. She turned and saw the other girl asleep, still sitting on the rock. She gently grabbed her head before she could fall and moved it across her lap.

“Oh Hope,” Josie murmured at her sleeping form, “How did we ever come to this?” She of course got no answer, so she sat back to start her watch, letting herself enjoy Hope’s gentle breathing through the cold, dark night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey friends, I hope you're enjoying! next chapter will be the last Hope chapter of the games :)


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A warning for you guys, this chapter contains mentions and depictions of suicide

When Hope woke up, she was extremely disoriented. All she knew was that she was on the ground, but her head was resting on something. She could hear soft breathing, and looked up to see Josie sitting against a rock. She realized that her head was on Josie’s lap, so she quickly moved it. 

She stretched, and allowed Josie some more time to sleep while she ran a hand through her hair. Josie had braided it nicely. It had barely moved throughout the night. 

“Hope?” Josie asked blearily, “Is it morning?”

“Yep,” Hope said, “What were you saying last night? About foreshadowing?”

“Foraging,” Josie said.

“Right, same thing,” Hope said. She’d heard Josie perfectly well last night, but she wanted to make the girl laugh. She was pleased when she saw the small smile that graced Josie’s face. Mission accomplished. The other girl grabbed her bow and said,

“We should get going. There will be more bushes outside of the wood, away from the Cornucopia. Hopefully Roman and Kym haven’t gotten there yet.”

“Don’t forget the girl from Five,” Hope said.

“Right,” Josie said, “I keep forgetting about her.”

“She’s good that way,” Hope said as they started their walk, “I’ve only run into her a few times, all of them not knowing she was there. She’ll be a lot harder to catch than Roman and Kym.”

“But she doesn’t fight back,” Josie added.

“How would you know?” Hope asked.

“I crashed into her after the bloodbath. She could have killed me, but she didn’t.”

“I could have killed you at the bloodbath, and I didn’t,” Hope said as she followed Josie over some stones, “And trust me, I’ve taken out my fair share of these guys.”

“There’s something different about her,” Josie said, “She’s not a killer, I can feel it.” Hope felt a surge of jealousy as she listened to Josie speak so highly of this girl. She didn’t even know her! She could be a serial killer for all they knew! 

“Well you never know what being in this arena can do to you, so…”

“I guess not,” Josie said, “I just don’t get the killer sense from her, if that makes sense.”

“It doesn’t!” Hope snapped, but regretted as soon as she saw Josie’s hurt expression.  _ Shit, she hadn’t meant to offend her! _ “Um, I mean, uh...never mind.” Hope quickened her pace and went ahead of Josie as they exited the woods. She wasn’t expecting the giant gust of wind that greeted her when she did. It nearly knocked her off her feet.

“You okay?” Josie asked.

“Fine,” Hope grumbled, wiping some leaves that had fallen off her shoulders, “So, do we just look around at bushes, or…” 

“Pretty much. We can make a collection then head out of here,” Josie said, “My Mom taught me which berries to pick and not pick. Do you want me to teach you?”

“I know how to pick berries, thank you very much,” Hope said. It was a lie, but she’d already admitted that she couldn’t braid her hair, she couldn’t dig herself deeper.

“Okay, we’ll meet back here, then,” Josie said. She went left, and Hope went right. Hope slid her jacket off and placed it on the ground to put her berries on. She ran her hands through the bush, looking at the berries. Most of them were shriveled up from the cold. Hope plucked one, and winced as it pretty much fell apart in her hands. That wouldn’t feed anybody. 

She kept going, and as she found more and more shriveled food, she was considering changing her position when she saw the plumpest looking berries she’d ever seen. Now that was something. They looked familiar, probably the same ones her parents used to give her for breakfast. They smelled so good! 

She reached forward and plucked them out, liking how soft they felt in her hands. Her stomach rumbled, and she debated eating one, but she wanted a bigger pile than Josie, so she just left her giant clump on her jacket. She was gathering a lot more when she heard the loud cannon sound echo through the arena. She hadn’t heard it in days. 

_ Please not Josie, _ she thought,  _ Anyone but Josie _ . 

“Hope!” she heard Josie call.  _ Oh thank God. _ Hope gathered the rest of her berries and ran back to meet Josie, who looked panicked at the sight of the berries in her hands.

“I thought the cannon was you-” Hope started, but was cut off when Josie slapped her hand, effectively knocking all the berries out of her hand, “What the hell?!”

“Those are nightlock berries, Hope!” Josie shouted at her, “You eat just one and you’ll be dead in minutes!”  _ Nightlock?! No, they couldn’t be… _ Hope looked at the collection on the ground, the same similar smell. If it wasn’t from breakfast, then why was it so familiar?

“Did you eat any of them?” Josie asked.

“No, no I didn’t,” Hope assured her partner, who was growing more and more anxious.

“You scared me half to death,” Josie said, and she did the one thing Hope never would have expected by wrapping her arms around her in a hug. Hope hadn’t gotten a real hug since when she’d been with Jade the night before the reaping.

Josie didn’t smell like daffodils, she didn’t smell nice at all from being stuck in this arena, but in the moment, Hope had never felt safer. She returned the hug, and allowed herself to rest her head on Josie’s shoulder, taking all of her in. And it felt so good. Sadly for Hope, Josie pulled out of the hug and said,

“So if we’re both okay, who was the cannon for?” Hope looked around, getting ready to fight in case whoever it was had been murdered. But there was no need for a fight.

“Over there,” she said, raising her knife to point at the body lying next to Hope’s jacket, some of the berries from her pile still in her hands. Hope could see the remnants of berry around her mouth, “I didn’t even know she was following me.”

“She was clever,” Josie said, “But she must have been starved like the rest of us. She was probably willing to eat any food she found.” She walked up to the body to examine it, and as Hope slowly walked behind her, she nearly threw up at the familiarity of the dead girl’s cold emotionless eyes.

_ Hope walked through the town, tucking her polo shirt into her skirt. She gave polite waves to the workers who passed her, some of whom wished her luck. _

_ “Don’t need it,” she said. Jade was going to volunteer, so she didn’t need to worry. She did, however, want to ask the girl if she’d walk with her to the Reaping. She walked up to the girl’s house, and as she knocked on the door, she was surprised to see it just open. _

_ “Jade?” she asked when she entered, “Ms. Tulle?” She could hear voices upstairs, none of them being Jades. Though she did recognize… _

_ “Hope, what are you doing here?” Her Mom asked as she came down the stairs. _

_ “I could ask you the same thing,” Hope said. Her mother gave her a glare at her flippant tone, so she said, “I came to ask Jade if she wanted to walk to the Reaping together.” _

_ “You’re going to be late,” Hayley said, “You need to go.” _

_ “But what about Jade?” Hope asked. _

_ “Hope. Go, now!” Hayley shouted at her daughter, and it made Hope shrink back. Not once in seventeen years had her Mother ever raised her voice at her. Something was wrong. Hope shoved past her Mom and thundered up the stairs. _

_ “Hope Andrea Mikaelson!” she heard her Mom call, but she ignored her. She went down the hall to Jade’s room, where Valerie, Roman, and her Dad all were. _

_ “Dad?” Hope asked the man, “What’s going on?” _

_ “ _ _ You shouldn’t be here sweetheart,” he said, moving to hide something behind him. Hope looked at her boyfriend, _

_ “Roman? What is this?”  _

_ “We never thought something like this would happen,” the boy muttered, putting his head in his hands, doing nothing to help Hope.  _

_ Hope looked over at Valerie, who was sitting on Jade’s bed, with her daughter’s dress from the reaping over her knees. Her eyes were near empty, no emotion in them at all. Hope couldn’t take not knowing, so she attempted to push past her Dad, but Roman grabbed her. _

_ “Take her outside,” Klaus instructed the boy, but Hope was stronger than him. She shoved her boyfriend off her and ran past her Dad, skidding to a halt when she saw what he was trying to hide. It was Jade’s body, lying limp on the ground. Her lips were blue, and in her hand were berries that Hope didn’t recognize, but reminded her of the ones Mom made for breakfast. _

_ “Dad,” Hope said slowly, “Is she…” Her Dad didn’t answer. Instead he yelled at Roman, _

_ “I said take her outside, dammit!” Hope felt numb as Roman took her, and he nearly had her out of Jade’s room when she started to fight back. _

_ “No!” She yelled, “No! Let me back in!” She smacked Roman away, and nearly got back when she felt her Mother’s hands take her too. Outnumbered, she was dragged away from Jade’s room and taken to the yard outside. _

_ “You two need to get to the square,” Hayley said, “You can’t be late.” _

_ “Of course Mrs. Mikaelson,” Roman told her. He took Hope’s hand and said, “Come on, we should be getting out of here.” _

_ “Is she dead?” Hope asked her Mom. Hayley shook her head and said, _

_ “Some tributes just can’t handle it…” _

_ “Dammit just give me a straight answer!” Hope snapped at her Mom. The older woman looked at her and said,  _

_ “Yes Hope. She’s dead.” A cold feeling went over Hope. The world “dead” was ringing through her ears. Jade was gone. She wouldn’t get to say goodbye to her before she got on the train, or hold her hand at the Reaping. She was just...gone. _

_ “Mom…” Hope said, “Does this mean….at the Reaping…” Hayley shook her head, _

_ “Don’t even worry about it, you aren’t getting picked,” Hayley assured her, and Roman continued with,  _

_ “Yeah, and you’re not going until next year. You  _ have _ to be in the Quarter Quell.” _

_ “It’s the rule,” Hope said, “I have to do it.” Roman took her to the side and said, _

_ “Stop it! You aren’t going this year.” _

_ “And why not?” Hope asked, “Scared?” He scoffed, _

_ “Of course not. But Hope, we’re getting married. We can’t go in there at the same time, how would that work out?” Hope stayed silent, “And besides, whoever they pick will be easier for me to take out than Jade, so I’ll make it home just fine.” _

_ “Take her out?” Hope asked. _

_ “Well yeah, c’mon babe, we both knew Jade was never coming home.” He gave Hope a near creepy smile and said, _

_ “I’m going to win this. Then you’ll win next year, and we’ll be together. Isn’t that what you want?”  _ No, I want Jade _ , was all Hope was able to think. _

_ “Yeah,” she lied, “It’s what I want.” _

_ “Good,” he said, “Now c’mon, let’s go. We can’t be late.” He walked off, and Hope gave one last look to her Mother, who nodded her along.  _

_ She turned to follow Roman, and held in a gag as the boy went to hold her hand. She wasn’t sure how she felt about him, or what she felt about what Jade had done, but she knew one thing for sure.  _

_ She was volunteering at the Reaping. And when she got to that arena, she would take out Roman herself. _

“Hope, we need to go,” Josie said, her voice echoing in the back of Hope’s head. The other girl grabbed her arm to pull her along, “C’mon!”

“I lied to you,” Hope said. Josie frowned,

“What do you mean?” she asked.

“I told you I volunteered early because the girl before me...because her Mom was having a baby.” Josie nodded, “That wasn’t true.”

“What do you me-” Josie began to ask, but was cut off when the wind picked up as the hovercraft came for the body, “Come on, we can’t be around that thing. We’ll find food somewhere else.” She led Hope into the woods and said, “They’ll shock you if you get too close.”

“Right,” Hope murmured. She leaned against one of the trees and sat down, placing her head in her hands. It had been a long day, and they hadn’t even been awake for an hour.

“Hope?” Josie asked, “What were you saying earlier? Before the hovercraft?”  _ Oh. Right.  _ Hope had been about to spill all her dirty laundry.

“It doesn’t matter,” Hope said, “I was just a little freaked out from that girl.”

“Penelope,” Josie said.

“Whatever,” Hope grumbled. Josie gave her a small smile and asked,

“Please? You were saying something.” Hope looked into the other girl’s eyes. She didn’t see any malice or the eyes of someone who would use this information against her. She looked caring, like she genuinely wanted to know. Hope had never met anyone like that before.

“The girl who was supposed to go...her name was Jade,” Hope started slowly, and Josie gave her an encouraging nod. She continued with,

“And Jade, she and I were friends. She even trained me, actually. But around the time of this year's Reaping, it was getting obvious who the victor was going to be. Roman was scoring higher than her in every training simulation, and he and I started to go out because I was the favorite to win in the Quarter Quell. Who wouldn’t want two victors together, right?”

“Right,” Josie said softly.

“And anyway, the day of the Reaping, I put my nice little outfit on and went to her house. I wanted her to walk to the plaza with me. But when I got there...Roman, her Mom, and my parents were there, which wasn’t what I was expecting. My Mom yelled at me when I asked what was going on, and she’s never yelled at me. She scolded, sure, but never yelled. I knew something was wrong after that, so I went into the house, which was when I saw her.”

“What happened?” Josie asked.

“She committed suicide,” Hope said, “With those same damn berries.” Josie’s face paled. Hope could see her searching for something to say, but coming up with nothing. Though who could blame her? Hope herself still didn’t really know what to say when it came to Jade.

“Then Roman, the asshole, made a dig on how he would’ve killed her anyway, and that was when I really got angry,” Hope said, “And this, dear Josie, is where you and I differ.” 

“How so?” Josie asked.

“You’re in this, and you want to win for your sister. Maybe your district too,” Hope said, “And of course I’d want that too, but that’s not why I volunteered. No, I volunteered so I could be the one to take Roman Sienna  _ down _ .” Her face darkened, and she could see a flash of fear cross Josie’s eyes, but that fear soon turned to determination.

“Then let’s take him out, together,” she said.

“How do you suppose we do that?” Hope asked. Josie pulled her hand out from behind her back and showed Hope a clump of nightlock. She smiled mischievously and said,

“Maybe Roman likes berries too.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Last Hope chapter of the games! We're in the endgame now...


	17. Chapter 17

Josie pocketed the berries again, and led Hope through the woods to find a place to set up camp for the day. Once they were settled, they could figure out ways to get the berries to Roman. He had to be getting hungry by now. The arena was running out of food. 

“If we can’t get the berries to him, do we have a plan B?” Hope asked.

“No, but we should get one,” Josie said, “You think you could knife him?”

“Maybe,” Hope said, “But he doesn’t look when he runs, your arrows would be a better option.” Josie wasn’t sure she could take him, so she said,

“No, you should be the one to do it. I promise you’ll have a better chance.”

“In that case, maybe I should take the bow,” Hope said.

“Do you know how to use it?” she asked.

“It can’t be that hard, it’s just aiming and shooting right?”

“Kind of. It’s a little more than that, especially because the wind is kicking up.” She pulled an arrow from her quiver and said,

“Come on, I’ll show you.” She handed Hope her bow, and told her to point towards the tree, “Keep your arm here, and pull back on the release. And watch the wind, it’s going to the east, so you’re gonna have to aim west. Got it?” Hope did not get it. She shot every single arrow in the grass near the tree. Not one arrow hit the bark.

“Well, that’s...not good,” Josie murmured. She picked up the arrows and said, “Okay, I’ll try to get a shot at Roman if the berries don’t work. But that's the last resort. You’re gonna have to try to work with the knife. There’s a level of trust between you two, maybe you’ll get close.”

“Maybe,” Hope said, “He’s been busy too. There hasn’t been a cannon since Pantelope which means the girl from 11 is still alive.”

“Penelope,” Josie said, not liking Hope taking a dig at one of the fallen tributes, “And you’re right. We should search for him, and plant the berries when it gets dark.”

“That won’t be too long,” Hope said. Josie looked around and frowned as she saw the arena get dark. That made no sense, it was morning!

“The game makers must really want to end this,” Josie said.

“Indeed,” Hope said, “We’d better get moving then. My guess is they’ll definitely want most of us dead by tonight.” Josie shuddered at Hope’s dark tone. She had a feeling that by the end of this day, Hope would be the only one left standing. 

The two of them left their makeshift camp and walked into the woods. Josie didn’t like how it continued to get darker. They walked in silence until Josie heard a loud howl echo through the woods.

“Did you hear that?” she asked Hope.

“Unfortunately,” she said, “Let’s stay close.” Hope pressed herself against Josie’s body, and even in their precarious situation, she felt her heart flutter.  _ Stop it, Josie! _ she told herself. Now was  _ not _ the time for that. The girls heard another howl, followed by a scream.  _ Kym _ .

“That can not be good,” Hope said. There was growling and more screaming, and soon enough, another cannon sound came through the arena. The sky lit up blue, and Josie watched as Penelope and Kym’s faces were shown in the sky.

“So that means…” Josie started.

“Roman’s the only one left,” Hope finished grimly.

“You know what this means, right?” Josie asked. Hope frowned,

“What?”

“The team rules are still in play,” she said, “If you take me out right now, you go home, Hope. I know it isn’t exactly what you want, but don’t you want to get out of here?”

“I want to win for my district,” Hope said, “Who wouldn’t want that? But we promised each other. You and me until everyone was out. I intend to keep that promise.” 

“So you want to stay here with me in the dark woods, with a pack of wild animals out there ready to take all of us out, just so you can kill Roman?”

“I loved her, Josie,” Hope said, “This is what I came here for.”

“Okay,” Josie said, even though she still didn’t completely agree with her. She didn’t mind a few more hours of life, either.

“It’s gotten quiet,” Hope murmured, “Maybe the dogs are gone?”

“Doubtful,” Josie said, “Keep quiet. We can listen for them.” Hope nodded and pressed against Josie. Josie nearly gasped, that same strange feeling from the water coming back. Dammit, how did Hope keep doing that to her!  _ Not the time, not the time _ , she kept repeating. She and Hope moved forward, and they both winced at the sound of a twig breaking.

“Is it bad that I hope that’s Roman?” Hope asked.

“Nope,” Josie said, “Not at all!” She ended up screaming as the biggest dog she’d ever seen jumped out at them.

“Run!” Hope screeched. The two girls dashed down the path they’d taken, and the barking of the dogs was getting more ravenous. There was more than one.

“They’re moving too fast!” Josie yelled.

“Keep going,” Hope said, “If we make it to the Cornucopia, we can get to the top!” Josie nodded and quickened her pace as they ran. 

She thought they were making good time until one of the dogs leaped and landed in front of them. Hope screamed, so Josie grabbed an arrow and shot it at the dog’s eye. As it howled and turned, Josie noticed something oddly familiar about it: Their eyes were the exact same color as…

“Jed?” she asked, almost inaudibly. The dog bared their teeth at Josie, and she could swear she was looking right in Jed’s eyes as her arrow entered his chest. She could see the dog’s collar, and her face paled when she saw the 1 inscribed on the tag. 

“Josie, this way,” Hope said, pulling her away from the dog. Josie was barely able to function on her own at this point, so Hope was her only guiding force.

“It looked just like him…” she murmured.

“We need to hurry!” Hope snapped. She started running faster, and Josie was nearly tripping over her feet trying to keep up. The dogs were getting closer, and Josie could see a lot of them more clearly. The other dog from 1 had Maya’s piercing eyes, the one from 5 moved as quickly as Penelope, and the small lithe one from 11 had the curliest fur. Just like MG’s hair.

“I can’t do this,” Josie said, “I’m gonna be sick.”

“Josie!” Hope snapped, “You’re gonna get us killed!” The dogs were pounding onto them, and there was less space. Josie needed to run. She broke from Hope’s grip and started running, praying that the eyes would get out of her mind soon. They made it to the Cornucopia.

“Almost there,” Josie said. She made it to the base, and Josie threw her bow on top before climbing up. She was helping Hope up when one of the dogs leaped up and sank its teeth right into Hope’s right leg. She screeched out in pain.

“Josie, help!” she yelled. Josie grabbed her bow, placed the arrow inside, and aimed it at the dog, but hesitated when she saw its face. The same kind eyes, curly fur. And even though it’s mouth was curled around Hope’s leg, it was still twisted in the same dorky way.

“Landon,” she said. The “12” on its collar was now very clear to her.

“Josie!” Hope screeched. The dog was biting deeper.  _ Dog. _

“You’re not Landon,” Josie said. She aimed her bow and hit the dog right in the head. It loosened its grip on Hope’s leg and fell to the ground. It almost took Hope with it, but Josie grabbed her before it could, pulling her up to the Cornucopia.

“Took you long enough,” Hope grumbled.

“Shut up,” Josie said, not in the mood to talk. She could still see Landon’s eyes. It was almost like the game makers had taken the tribute’s actual ones!

“We should be safe up here,” Hope said as she pressed her leg, “I don’t think the dogs will be able to make it up.”

“That’s good,” Josie said, “But we can’t stay here forever. They’re not going to go away, and your leg is  _ not  _ looking good right now.”

“Maybe they’ll kill Roman before they get to us,” Hope said with a dry laugh, “I would like to get either first or second, you know?”

“With the way this is going, Roman will most definitely be the victor,” Josie said, hands trembling. All of the dogs were heading their way, she could hear them. She was about to tell Hope that they should get their weapons ready when she felt meaty hands around her shoulders. 

She screamed and attempted to fight back, but she wasn’t fast enough. She could see Hope tense up in fear from across the Cornucopia, and she felt herself get dragged up, a rough hand crushing her throat. 

“Well well,” Roman said, “Isn’t this a predicament?” Fear crossed through Josie’s mind. _ Had this been Hope’s plan all along? Get her cornered by both of them so Roman could finish her off? _ But as she looked at Hope’s terrified expression, she realized that wasn’t the case. She hadn’t been in on this.

“Let her go, Roman,” Hope said slowly.

“Now why the hell would I do that?” the other boy asked, “I get rid of Saltzman, we get to go home. Isn’t that what you want?!” 

“Just put her down, we can talk about this!” Hope said, but the boy didn’t budge.

“I don’t get you, Hope,” he said, “You volunteered. I thought you wanted to win. I thought you wanted  _ us _ to win. For our District!”

“Of course I wanted that,” Hope said, and Josie watched as Hope’s hands curled around Josie’s discarded bow. Oh dear, what was she doing? She didn’t even have arrows, Josie was still wearing her quiver. Hope pulled herself up, her bad leg bending badly under her. 

“I was ready to go next year, you know? How cool would that have been, Klaus Mikaelson’s daughter winning the Quarter Quell.”

“And you threw that all away,” Roman said, “And for what? For what, huh?” He repeated, pressing down on Josie’s throat as he did. She coughed as the air grew scarcer and scarcer. There was no way she was making it out alive. She was done for.  _ I’m sorry Lizzie. I’m sorry MG. _

“I did it for her,” Hope said, and Josie could feel Roman tense with anger. 

“Holy shit,” the boy said after a moment, “You’re telling me you ruined our District’s chances for a dynasty victory for that dumb bitch who couldn’t take it?”

“Don’t you speak about her that way!” Roman laughed a big, ugly laugh.

“You really are such a joke, Hope,” the boy said, “You had to know with a heart like that, you were never going to be the one to make it out, right?”

“Maybe not,” Hope said, “But I can at least be sure the winner isn’t you.” What she did next was unexpected. She reached into her pocket, and while Josie expected her to get a knife, she instead pulled out an arrow that was still wet with blood. Alyssa’s blood. She placed it in Josie’s bow, and aimed.

“Go ahead and shoot me,” Roman said, “But if I go, Saltzman goes too.” He wasn’t wrong. With the way he was holding her, they’d both be dog food, “Though I guess this does work for you. You get to go home, be celebrated forever. Well, kind of. You know the whole District will turn on you for taking my life, but oh well, that’s your problem, right?”

“I hate you,” Hope said to the boy, and Josie could see tears starting to form. One of the dogs crashed into the Cornucopia, making the whole structure shake. Josie nearly screamed.

“I hate you too,” Roman snarled at the girl, “It should have been you who took those berries. Not her! At least Jade knew where her loyalties lied.”

“You are a sad excuse for a person,” Hope told Roman.

“And you are a coward and a fool, who doesn’t even have the guts to shoot that arrow if it means her precious miner trash gets the boot.” There was a pause, “Come on Hope, shoot it. Oh wait, you can’t. Because you’re just a sad little girl in love all over again.” 

As Roman talked, his hand moved in his gestures. Josie shakily raised her hand that was still covered in Hope’s blood from her leg bite, and shakily drew an X in Roman’s outstretched hand, praying Hope got the message. She did, because she turned the bow from Roman’s head to his hand, keeping mind of the west blowing wind. 

She fired, and the arrow went right through the X. As Roman howled in pain, Josie was able to get out from his grip and kick him off the Cornucopia. His screams echoed through the arena as the dogs ripped into him. Josie ran to Hope and helped her up against her side. 

“Josie?” Hope asked quietly as the screaming continued. Josie nodded slowly and pulled an arrow from her quiver. She took the bow from Hope, and aimed the arrow into the pack of dogs. 

She could still see Roman’s head. She aimed right at it, and the cannon fired soon after. As Roman’s face appeared in the sky, Hope and Josie watched in horror as the dogs vanished right from their spot, leaving the two of them alone in the arena. The last two standing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some fluff, then a lot of terror. I hope you guys liked this one! Last chapter of the games is up next...


	18. Chapter 18

After the hovercraft came for Roman’s body, the sky turned back from the dark night into the outcast day. Those game makers were really something special. After it had seemed certain that the dogs weren’t coming back, Josie had helped Hope down the Cornucopia, and was now leaning her against the once pristine wall as she examined her leg.

“I’m not gonna lie, this doesn’t look good,” Josie said, “Maybe I can find something in the woods to tie it up. Just hang in there, I’ll be right back.” 

“Josie,” Hope said before she could go, “I think we both know what you need to do here.”

“Yeah, I need to get something for your leg,” she said, “We need a sponsor…”

“Josie,” Hope repeated, “My leg isn’t going to get better. And we’re not going to get sponsors if there are two of us left. One of us needs to go, that was the deal.”

“I’m not gonna shoot you, Hope,” Josie said, “I can’t.”

“Damn, are you a fool in love, too?” Josie scoffed.

“No, are you?” she asked as a joke, but the pain on Hope’s face gave her the realization that Roman hadn’t just been spewing bullshit, “Hope?”

“Just forget it. Please,” Hope said, “Would you just put me out of my misery?”

“Hope-”

“ _ Please _ ,” she repeated, “I can’t take the pain anymore.” Josie shook her head and said,

“You were supposed to take _ me _ out, you know?”

“It’ll be okay,” Hope said dryly from the ground, “Roman and I can party in hell together for the rest of eternity.”

“Don’t talk like that.”

“Why? I’m dying, let me have this.”

“What happens if I do this?” Josie asked.

“You go home,” Hope said, “Simple as that, right?”

“I suppose,” Josie said, “But everyone at home, they’re not going to be happy that I used Landon’s medicine to save you. I could’ve prevented what happened to him.”

“Or you would have gotten there too late, and we both would have died,” Hope said, “Roman would have killed you on the Cornucopia just now, and then he’d be on the craft home.” 

“He’d probably be gloating to the Peacekeepers about all the people he’d killed.”

“You know it,” Hope said, “I wouldn’t have been like that though. Killing wasn’t as easy as I made it look. And yes, I consider  _ Penelope _ as one of my victims. She followed me and watched me pick those berries. I caused that death.”

“You caused nothing,” Josie said, looking to the sky, “They did. They made these games a thing, they did this to us, to our families.”

“Indeed they did,” Hope said, “But what are we to do about it?” 

“We don’t let them win,” Josie said, almost inaudibly.

“Excuse me?” Hope asked.

“Yeah,” Josie said, “They get their joy from having a victor, right? Well I say, we don’t give them what they want. Let’s see what they think of that.”

“Josie...think this through,” Hope said.

“Trust me,” she said, “I am.” She stuck her hand in her jacket pocket and pulled out the nightlock berries that she’d been saving for Roman. She kept half, and gave the rest to Hope.

“Are you sure about this?” Hope asked, looking at the berries.

“Probably not sure enough,” Josie admitted, “But yeah, I’ll do it if you do.” Hope looked uncertain at first, but she soon slowly nodded.

“On three?” she asked. Josie nodded and started,

“One…”

“Two…” Hope said, and the two of them brought the berries to their lips. Josie could smell them. They smelled sweet, like they would taste delicious. Josie hoped this would happen as fast as she’d been told. She really didn’t want a dragged out death.

“Three,” they said at the same time, and right as Josie held the poisonous berries to her lips, a voice rang out through the arena.

“Stop!” came the voice of the head game maker. Josie and Hope both stopped in their tracks, berries nearly touching their lips.

“May I present,” the voice continued, “The victors of the 74th annual Hunger Games!” 

The speaker cut off after that, and at first Josie thought it was some kind of a sick joke, until the familiar sounds of the hovercraft came rushing in. The two girls looked up and watched as the silver craft came down towards them, a ladder falling down instead of a crane for a body.

“Do we go?” Hope asked as the two of them dropped the berries.

“I don’t think we have a choice,” Josie said. She tossed her quiver off for the first time in days, and hoisted Hope onto her back. She abandoned the bow and walked over to the ladder, grabbing it tightly. 

She ascended up, feeling a rush of euphoria as the arena got further and further away. This was actually happening. She was going home! She climbed into the hovercraft, where a Peacekeeper instructed her to strap herself in while Hope was taken from her.

“Where is she going?” Josie asked.

“Just sit down,” the Peacekeeper said. Josie didn’t like how Hope was getting farther and farther away, so she attempted to pass the Peacekeeper, but two of them grabbed her.

“Stop it! Let me go!” she snapped at them. Another one came, took her from behind, and Josie felt something sharp go through her neck. The world around her got fuzzy, and soon there was nothing but the dark blackness.

When Josie woke up, she could hear a faint beeping sound. She stretched her eyes open and realized it was coming from a monitor. She was in a hospital. She could feel the itchy material of the hospital gown on her body, and rubbed at it. She wanted it off, it didn’t feel right.

“Those suck, right? I got a rash from mine,” came someone’s voice. Josie looked up and let out a huge sigh of relief.

“Stefan!” she exclaimed. Her mentor smiled at her and said,

“It’s good to see you, Josie.” He walked closer, and Josie surprised both of them by wrapping him in a hug. It took him a second, but he soon reciprocated it. But as they pulled apart, Josie got a good look at him, and noticed a healing cut on his face.

“What happened to you?” she asked. He guiltily looked down and said,

“It’s nothing you need to worry about. I’m uh, I’m just really glad you’re okay,” he said after Josie raised an eyebrow at him, “But what you and Ms. Mikaelson did...there’s gonna be consequences.” She’d give him the benefit of changing the subject if it meant she could know more about Hope.

“Consequences?” Josie asked.

“Maybe not now,” he murmured, “But there will be…” Josie knew that was what she needed to be worried about, but all she could think about was Hope.

“How is she?” she asked, “Can I see her?”

“She’s fine, and not now, you need to rest,” Stefan said. Josie shook her head and said,

“No, I need to see her.”

“And I wasn’t making a suggestion. Sit back down,” Stefan ordered as Josie moved to get up from the bed. She sat back down and he said, “Now, you wanna tell me what caused that? You had her bleeding out in front of you, she was going to die.”

“Yeah, I realized,” Josie said.

“Then what the hell were you thinking? A suicide pact in front of all of Panem? Do you even know all the uproar you’ve caused?”

“The arena has no contact with the outside world, so...no,” Josie said.

“Don’t get smart with me,” Stefan scolded.  _ Who was he, her father? _ “We’re going to need to do some damage control when the two of you go talk with Enzo tomorrow.”

“We’re giving an interview tomorrow?” Josie asked.

“That’s the tradition,” he said, “But before we put you in front of the cameras, I’m going to need to know. Why did you do it?”

“I don’t know,” Josie said, “I just...I didn’t want her to die.” Stefan shook his head, so Josie continued with, “There’s something that Landon used to say when we first started to get Reaped. I asked him what he would do if he got picked, and at twelve years old he said that if he died, it would be on his terms. The Capitol didn’t get to own him. I didn’t want them to own me.”

“Touching,” Stefan said, “That’ll get you annihilated on stage, think of something else.”

“You want me to lie?”

“I want you to lie so hard that your nose stretches across the whole damn theatre!” Stefan snapped at her, “This is serious, Josie. You say one wrong thing, who knows what they’ll do?”

“Fine, what do you want me to do?” she asked.

“We’re gonna play out this love story to the fullest extent we can,” he said, “You love her, you would do anything for her. You couldn’t  _ imagine _ your life without her.”

“Well that’s not really true-”

“What did I just say to you?” Stefan asked angrily.

“Sorry,” she said. She’d never seen a person so angry yet concerned at the same time. It was honestly kind of weird, but endearing?

“Hope will be expecting to do the same. She made a big mistake in letting you live after the girl from Eleven passed. The higher ups are very unhappy with her.”

“But she’s okay now, right?”

“Yeah, she’s fine. But you need to start worrying about yourself. You being alive is putting a real strain on the Capitol. Especially because you could have killed Hope, but chose not to. And you were the one that thought of the stunt with the berries. There’s a lot you’ll need to answer for on that front.”

“I got that,” Josie said, “Can I please go see Hope before the interview?”

“I’m sorry. No contact between the two of you until tomorrow. You’ll be let out of here in a few and Katherine’ll talk to you. Then you’ll meet with Dorian in the morning to get ready.”

“Stefan please,” Josie said, “I just want to see if she’s okay.”

“I said no, and I mean it. Just get some rest, alright? We’ll talk some more strategy in a few hours.” He got up from the bed, and Josie was about to go back to sleep when he said, “And Josie?”

“Yeah?” she asked.

“I knew you’d be the one to make it out of there. It’s good to have you back.”

“Thanks Stefan,” Josie said, allowing herself to smile. He waved goodbye before heading out of the hospital room. Josie waited a few more minutes before moving the covers out of the way. 

That was when she got the best view of her body. Her leg which had once been burned and cut was now completely clear, with only a small remnant of a scar left from where Hope had stabbed her. Her fingernails had been cut down, and all the dirt and blood that had been on her body were gone. 

Her feet still had some calluses on them, but they weren’t anywhere near as bad as Josie would’ve thought from how much they’d hurt in the arena. She stepped off the bed and nearly yelped at the pain that coursed through her feet when she did. All of her joints were aching, and she was regretting getting up.

“Stupid arena,” she grumbled. Her hand was connected to a pouch filled with liquid, so she pulled the bandage out, squeaking in pain as she did. She guessed she shouldn’t have done that, but it was too late now. She shook the wires away and slipped out of her room. 

The hallway outside was completely crowded. Men in white coats were walking everywhere, and several men and women were walking through with clipboards, medicines, and more bags of fluids. There were more medical supplies in this hallway than all of District 12. 

The good thing about all the commotion was that Josie was able to slip by all of it unnoticed. She looked through every room. Most of them just had patients from the Capitol, but the one at the end of the hall-farthest from her room-had Hope. 

Josie could see her head through the window on the door. Her hair was out and over one shoulder, and she had a bandage over her nose from where Josie had hit it. She’d probably need to apologize for that soon. She opened the door so she could talk to Hope, but stopped immediately when she saw Hope’s father inside.

“Josie,” Hope said, “What are you doing here?”

“I uh, just wanted to check in on you, see if you were okay,” Josie sputtered out, feeling very intimidated under the harsh stare of Hope’s father, “But I can go now.” Klaus moved from his spot and walked over to Josie. He was tall and scary, with eyes that felt like they could pierce through her whole body. 

She was about to just leave, and she thought he was going to kick her out, so  she got the biggest surprise of all when he gave her a hug.

“Thank you,” he said. His voice didn’t sound scary or malicious. It sounded like a Father who was happy to see his daughter. A caring voice.

“Of course,” Josie said, awkwardly hugging him back. She could see Hope from behind, giving her a grateful smile. Klaus pulled away and said,

“I’ll leave you two alone for a short while.”

“Could I have some water, Dad?” Hope asked.

“Of course, sweetheart,” the man replied. He left the room, and Josie went over to the bed to sit with Hope. She sat next to her and asked, 

“How have you been feeling?”

“Fine,” Hope said, “Do you want to see my new accessory?” Josie nodded, not sure what Hope was talking about, and watched as Hope moved her blanket to the side. At first, Josie didn’t notice anything until she saw Hope’s left leg. 

Her thigh was still there, but everything under the knee was gone, and a metal leg had replaced it. “The bite was infected, so they had to amputate. Dad was happy they were able to save the top.”

“Oh my God,” Josie said, “Can you walk on that?”

“It’ll take some practice, but I will eventually,” Hope said, “My Dad’s already called the best rehabilitators in the District to come meet with me.”

“I’m so sorry,” Josie said, “If I’d just shot at the dog earlier…”

“Josie,” Hope said, “It’s okay.” There was some silence between them, “I saw the dog’s eyes, and I recognized them too.”

“Really?” Josie asked, and Hope nodded.

“If it had been someone I knew, I would have hesitated too,” she said, “There is nothing that you need to be apologizing to me for.” She looked to her leg and continued with, “Besides, it’s kinda cool you know. No one else at school has a metal leg. It’ll give me a lot of cred when I get back.”

“You’re going back to school?” Josie asked.

“That’s the plan,” Hope said, “I know most Careers don’t, but I’m only seventeen, I have a life ahead of me. I’d like to live it, you know?”

“I do,” Josie said, “I’d planned on going back to school if I made it out, but that had felt like a slim chance at the time. I’m not really sure what I want to do next.”

“You’ll find something,” Hope said, “But speaking of what we’re going to do next...did Stefan tell you what my Dad told me?”

“He did,” Josie said, “I guess we’re in love now.”

“Apparently,” Hope said, “But you know, maybe it isn’t the worst thing.” She took Josie’s hand and said, “I’m willing to...pretend. If you are.” The way she said pretend was making Josie get that jittery feeling again. She really needed to find a way to make that stop.

“I’m willing. To pretend,” Josie added. 

“Good,” Hope said, and just when Josie thought she was going to lean in and kiss her, the door opened, and Klaus came in with the water. Hope pulled away and said,

“Thank you, Dad.”

“Of course. Ms. Saltzman, you should probably be getting back to your room. Your escort will be here to receive you soon.”

“Right,” Josie said, “I’ll see you at the interview, Hope.” She bid Klaus a goodbye before getting off the bed and leaving the room, her hand still tingling from where Hope had held it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thanks for all the kind comments, they mean a lot :)


	19. Chapter 19

The rest of the night had been mostly quiet, save a tearful reunion with Katherine. Josie wasn’t expecting the woman to be so emotional, but she’d been pretty much sobbing the minute Josie had stepped into the penthouse. 

She’d prepared a big feast for her, but Josie had felt too sick to eat it. She could hear Katherine and Stefan exchanging quiet banter while she laid in her bed, in the exact same room where she’d been before the arena. She was trying to sleep, but it was hard to. 

All she could think about was Landon’s empty room across the house. She wondered if his body had made it back to 12. Had Rafael seen it? Did he hate Josie for what she’d done? Josie had been excited to go home once she’d gotten to the hovercraft, but now she just felt nervous. 

She’d used medicine meant to save Landon’s life on a girl from another District. And it had been televised! Rafael was going to hate her. 

There was no way she was going to sleep. She moved the covers off of her and got out of the bed. She slid into the sandals she’d been provided with and went into the living room.

“Oh Josette,” Katherine said when she saw her, “Would you like to eat something?”

“No, I just wanted to take a walk. I’ll be back in a bit.” 

“Sweetheart, I don’t think-” Katherine began to argue, but Stefan cut in,

“Let her go, Kath,” he said, “She’ll be okay.” Katherine still looked uncertain, but it was a two against one situation, so she said,

“Well alright. Stefan and I will be here if you need anything.”

“Thank you,” Josie said, “Goodnight guys.” She received a good night from Katherine, and a grunt from Stefan, who was probably drunk. Josie got into the elevator, and was going to press the button for ground floor when she saw the button that said two. It hadn’t been allowed before, but then again, neither had two victors from different districts. 

Josie pressed the button and went to the second floor. The elevator opened into a more cozy looking apartment, but it was still extremely nice.

“Josie,” Klaus said from where he was sitting on the couch, “I didn’t expect to see you here.”

“Hi Mr. Mikaelson,” Josie greeted the man, “Is Hope still up?”

“She just went to bed,” he said. Josie envied her ability to sleep, “But there’s no need for you to go. I actually meant to talk to you.”

“Oh, alright,” Josie said, not trying to sound too nervous. But the man had killed seventeen tributes in the arena. That gave her some kind of right to fear.

“I won’t bite,” Klaus said as Josie sat as far away as possible.

“Oh, right. My bad,” she said, but she didn’t move. Klaus looked like he was going to say something about that, but he chose not to, and said,

“So I gather Mr. Salvatore has talked to you about what’s to be expected of you in the morning?” Josie nodded and said,

“Yeah, I know what to say.”

“Since it’s just us right now, I need to know,” Klaus began almost awkwardly. Josie noticed him play with his hands as he talked, almost like he was nervous. Was he nervous?

“Know what?” Josie eventually had to ask after some more silence.

“Is any part of what you’re being asked to say true?” Josie frowned, “We all watched the games, Ms. Saltzman. People saw what happened between the two of you.”

“Oh,” Josie said, hoping she wasn’t blushing too hard at the fact that the entirety of Panem had watched her make out with Hope in a grimy lake.

“I just thought...it looked real. But Hope has never...never mentioned  _ wanting _ to do anything with, well, you know, a girl.” 

“Oh,” Josie said.  _ Damn, she needed a new word. _ “Uh, but in the arena, she said…”

“Ah yes, Jade,” he said, cutting her off, “She was very special to Hope, but I guess I never noticed more feelings than friends. Hope was very secretive, so I suppose I can’t be too surprised.”

“Well, I don’t think Hope felt the same about me that she did about Jade,” Josie admitted, “I think a lot of it was just being in there...alone.”

“ If being in there was what was hard on her, then why not kill you and leave with Roman?”

“Hope went in there to kill Roman,” Josie said, “I guess maybe that was more important to her than anything. And keeping me alive gave her an ally to do that.”

“And when she asked you to kill her afterwards?”

“I mean I don’t kn-”

“Or, let’s go a little earlier. How about when you took that medicine that would have saved young Mr. Kirby’s life, and you used it on my daughter?” Josie had nothing for him on that front.

“I uh, I…” she trailed off, “All I could think about was saving her.”

“Was that more important to you than winning?” he asked.

“No, it couldn’t have been,” Josie said, “I promised MG and Lizzie that I’d make it out!”

“Then why did you ruin your chances by saving my daughter?”

“I don’t know!” Josie snapped, getting annoyed.

“Dad?” Hope asked, and both of them turned to see Hope standing by her bedroom door, “Why are you yelling at Josie?”

“I’m not yelling,” he said, “We’re just having a conversation.”

“Is everything okay?” Hope asked, and Josie realized she was talking to her. She quickly nodded her head and said,

“Everything is fine. I’m going to bed, I’ll see you guys in the morning.”

“But we haven’t finished,” Klaus said.

“Oh I think we have,” Josie said, not missing the glare Hope sent her Dad at Josie’s quick exit. It was nice to see her on her side, “Goodnight, Hope.”

“Goodnight Josie,” Hope said as Josie entered the elevator. She needed to get out of the apartment. She punched the 12 in and went back to the penthouse. 

As she stepped in, she saw Stefan and Katherine asleep on the couch, both holding wine glasses. She shook her head and went to grab them before they spilled all over the white couch. She placed them on the table, and took a bite of some of the bread. It was cold, but delicious. 

She took the unfinished one plus an extra back to her room, and ate them on her bed. She tried to move past her conversation with Klaus, but if she was being honest, it was all she was able to think about. It was bothering her that she wasn’t able to answer his questions, because they really had been kind of simple. Did she love Hope, or not? 

No should have been her answer. Hope wasn’t from her District, she’d actively tried to kill her, and Josie liked somebody else. Not that anyone knew, but the feelings were still real. So no was the answer, right?  _ Then why didn’t you say it, Saltzman? _ she thought. 

She knew the answer to that. Because it wasn’t true. 

She flopped back on the bed, and ran a hand through her head. What was she going to do? As she moved her hand from her head, she felt something under the pillow. She moved it out of the way and saw a folded piece of paper with her name written on it in scrawled handwriting. Familiar handwriting.  _ Landon’s. _ When had he left it? Josie unfolded the paper, and read the message.

“Dear, Josie,” it said, “If you’re reading this, it means I was right about you, and you made it out of the game. Which means that I...well, I don’t wanna get into that. The point is that I knew you could do it. You’re stronger than you know, and that’s going to get you far. Moving forward, I’d like to remember what I told you. Don’t let the Capitol own you, you aren’t their doll for them to parade around. From seeing what they’ve done to Stefan, I don’t want that for you.” 

Josie noticed the ink smudge as water got on it, and suddenly realized that she was crying. She tried to wipe away the tears on her cheeks, but they were just replaced by more. She didn’t want to keep reading, but she knew she had to.

“When you do make it home, tell Rafael that I loved him, and that I’m sorry for abandoning him. That was the biggest regret of my life, and I want him to know that. He’s the best brother anyone could ask for, and I know that he loved us more than words can say. That being said, be good to him. You mean a lot to him, and I know he means a lot to you.” 

He wasn’t wrong about that, 

“And, as for you and me...I understand that you don’t feel the same way, and I’m sorry for springing that on you and everyone at the interviews. I do hope you forgive me for that, and that one day you’ll find someone that makes you happy. It’s what you deserve. I am sorry that this had to happen to us. I really do think we could have ended up being good friends. With regret, Landon.” 

Josie could barely keep it together at this point, and she didn’t even know why! That letter had been heartfelt, sure, but not so much that it would make her cry like this! Her cries were about to come out as sobs, so she placed a hand to her mouth. If she woke Katherine, the woman would never stop fawning over her, and she really didn’t need that attention right now. 

She couldn’t stop though. Her body shook with more cries, and soon they were audible. She could hear movement outside, but it didn’t stop her. Couldn’t stop her. 

Her cries grew louder and uglier, and Landon’s well written note was now a mess of smudged ink mixed with the tears. She heard the door open, and was about to yell at Stefan and Katherine to go away when she felt an arm on her shoulder. 

All of the sudden she was back with Roman, him grabbing her ferociously. She screamed and shoved the person away as hard as she could, wincing as there was a crash with the dresser.

“Josie!” she heard Hope exclaim, “Josie, hey. It’s me. It’s Hope.” Josie’s vision cleared and she could see the girl moving to stand by the now tipped over desk.

“Hope?” she asked warily. The girl stood up and said,

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to intrude-”

“It’s okay,” Josie said, “I’m sorry I pushed you.” Her breath hitched, and she could feel more tears. She put a hand to her mouth in an attempt to contain it, but it just made it worse. She heard Hope move closer to her, and slowly put her hand on Josie’s shoulder as her sobs grew louder.

“Josie-” Hope started, but was cut off when Josie shakily said,

“I killed him. I killed Landon.” She’d been trying to convince herself of otherwise, but it was the truth. She’d used the medicine on Hope. She’d left him to die. If Hope had something to say, she didn’t say it, because she opted to instead wrap an arm around Josie and hold her close, which allowed the girl to cry out all the tears she’d been holding in.

About an hour had passed since then. Josie had gone to the bathroom to wash her face while Hope waited on the bed. Josie had spent the last ten minutes washing her face while the first fifty were spent sitting on a toilet seat and crying while the water from the shower was on.

Josie felt bad for wasting the water, but it was the Capitol. They had enough. She finished up in the bathroom, and went outside, kind of thinking Hope would be gone, so it was a pleasant surprise to see her still there. 

However, she was now asleep on the bed, Landon’s letter by her side. Josie was worried she’d read it, until she went over and saw that it was near illegible now due to Josie’s tears.  _ Good _ , she thought. It was for the best that her eyes were the only ones that had seen it. 

Josie took the letter and placed it in one of the drawers of the dresser. She was going to wake Hope up, but she looked peaceful asleep, so she just got on the other side of the bed and laid down next to her. She wasn’t able to sleep, but the company was enough to let her relax, and close her eyes.

When she opened them again, she was in her bed, but on her side, and something was under her. She looked down and saw Hope’s still sleeping form, with Josie’s arms wrapped around her. 

As quietly as she could, Josie slid her arms away. She looked out the window and saw the sun streaming in. It was morning. The morning of their interview. Josie went to Hope and shook her gently.

“Hope, wake up,” she said, “We need to get going soon.” The girl didn’t budge, so she shook her a little harder, “Hope, come on!” Her shove was a little too hard, because Hope reacted similarly to how Josie had last night by grabbing her arm and pulling her over the bed. The two of them tumbled over the soft mattress and landed badly on the ground.

“Ow!” Josie exclaimed.

“Jesus, don’t scare me like that!” Hope said.

“Hey you’re one to talk,” Josie said, “Will you get off of me, I can’t breathe!”

“Sorry,” Hope murmured. She moved off of Josie and said, “It’s been a little hard for me, trying to relax without looking over my shoulder.”

“Yeah, I get that,” Josie said. She saw the fallen tributes everywhere. She was worried they would never go away. There was a knock on the door, and the girls heard Katherine go,

“Josette, you should be getting ready. We have to be out of here in an hour!”

“Okay Katherine,” she said. She heard the woman’s footsteps fade, so she helped Hope up and said, “You should probably be heading back to your floor.”

“I should,” Hope said, “Thanks for not kicking me out or anything last night.”

“Of course,” Josie said, “I would nev-”

“Hope!” Klaus’s booming voice echoed through the penthouse, and Hope winced.

“I may have not asked for permission before heading up here. I’m gonna go calm him down, I’ll see you at the interview.” Hope shoved her boot back on and limped out of the room, leaving the door hanging open. 

Josie took that as a small nod asking her to go with her, so Josie grabbed a robe from the top of the dresser and placed it over her pajamas. When she went to the kitchen, Katherine was trying to calm down a raving Klaus while Stefan sat on the couch, drinking a bourbon. Josie went to him and asked,

“Could I have some of that?” He glared at her and said,

“Get lost, Saltzman.” She sighed and sat on the couch with him, watching while Hope went to calm her father.

“Daddy it’s fine,” she told him, “It’s fine, I’m okay.”

“You can’t leave like that,” he said in a scolding tone, but instead of anger in his eyes, it was just fear and sadness. Hope gave him a hug and said,

“I know Dad, I’m sorry.”

“You don’t understand,” Klaus said, “You can’t just  _ leave _ .” There was a moment of silence between the two Mikaelsons after that. Hope noticed everyone staring, so she gently tugged on her Dad’s shirt and said,

“Come on Dad, let’s talk about this alone.” She led the man to the elevator-well, he held on to her on the way to the elevator-and gave Josie a small goodbye. Once the two of them were gone, Stefan looked at Josie.

“Any clue on what that was about?” he asked.

“Answer for a sip?” He chuckled and said,

“Oh you’re good. Though I suppose…” he said, and was about to let Josie take a sip of his drink when Katherine took it from him.

“Kath!” he exclaimed.

“Both of you are acting childish,” she scolded, “Josette, go and get ready. Breakfast will be ready soon and you’ll want to eat something. We won’t be back until tonight. And Stefan, if you go in there smelling like a bar, everyone will look bad.”

“Yeah yeah Kitty Kat, I won’t embarrass you,” he said. He then looked at Josie and said, “But seriously, what were those two talking about?”

“What, you didn’t watch the games?” Josie asked.

“Assume I was drunk the whole time.” Josie knew he wasn’t since he’d sent her gifts, but she still decided to answer his question.

“Hope volunteered for the games without telling anybody, after the Career who was supposed to go this year committed suicide.” Silence followed her statement. The smirk from Stefan’s face faded, and Katherine stopped from where she’d been making coffee.  _ Had they really not seen? _ The room was dead quiet after that, Stefan eventually excusing himself to go get changed.

“Did I offend him?” Josie asked.

“No,” Katherine assured her, “It’s just a lot of information for one to take in.” She gave her a squeeze on the shoulder and said, “Go get dressed. I’ll make sure breakfast is on its way.”

“Sure,” Josie murmured before getting up from the couch, trying her best to wipe out all thoughts of Jade. She had an interview to get ready for.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you guys liked this one! Next chapter will be the interview! :)


	20. Chapter 20

Josie studied her feet. She’s been sitting on the makeup room table for the past hour, waiting for Dorian to come and work on her. She was excited to see him after so long. He was the only person from the Capitol she hadn’t seen yet. A few more minutes passed, and just as she was about to get really impatient, Dorian walked in with a smile on his face.

“Can I hug you?” he asked. Josie nodded eagerly, and took in the comfort from her stylist. As they pulled apart, he said, “You put on quite the show, kiddo.”

“So I’ve been told,” Josie said.

“What was your thought process at the end?” he asked. Josie shrugged and said,

“That I didn’t want Hope to die. Please don’t ask why. I still don’t know.”

“No I think you do,” Dorian said, and Josie glared at him, “But, it’s none of my business, right? Right. Now, let’s go through your look for the interview. What do you think...of this?” As he asked, he walked over to the side and pushed a button, revealing a dress behind two paneled doors. It was yellow and puffy, but the sleeves were a good length. They’d cover the swelling she had on her shoulders from carrying that backpack and quiver.

“I love it,” Josie said.

“Wonderful,” he said, “Stand up now, let’s get this fitted.” Josie stood up from the bed, and winced as pain shot through her legs.

“Still hurt?” Dorian asked.

“A little,” she said, “Are there any more pain meds?”

“You can get some more after the interview, they can call it up. For now, let’s try this out.” He pulled the dress off the stand and said, “Take the gown off, and we’ll slide this on.” 

Josie unclasped the gown, and winced at the sight of the unhealed bruises. She hadn’t really noticed the ones on her chest at the hospital. They’d gotten a lot bluer. Dorian helped her as she slid the dress on, and was pinning it up in the back while Josie stared at her reflection in the mirror. Her makeup team had made her face look almost as nice as it had looked when she’d came, but there was nothing they could do to get rid of the constant fear that danced in her eyes. No one would ever be able to fix that.

“Okay, that’s about done,” Dorian said, “What do you think?” Josie looked at herself in the mirror. Her dress looked good, and the makeup looked good. But she didn’t like the hair.

“The hair,” she said, “I don’t like the bun.” 

“That can be fixed,” Dorian said. He pulled her hair out of the tight bun it had been placed in, which took a lot of stress off of her throbbing head. Thinking about doing this interview was making her sick. Dorian moved her hair down over her shoulders, and now that it was out, Josie could really see how much longer it had gotten in the arena. It had grown a lot in three weeks.

“How do you like that?” he asked after running his hands through it a few times, “Down and simple.” Josie nodded and said,

“I like it. Is Hope ready?”

“She should be,” he said, “Come on, Ms. Pierce is going to want to talk to you.” He led her to a small waiting room, where Hope was already seated. She wasn’t wearing a dress, rather a royal blue pantsuit, white shirt, and yellow tie that matched Josie’s dress. That, combined with the tight ponytail her hair was in was enough to make Josie feel some sort of way.

“I’ll see you out there,” Dorian said as he walked her in.

“Thanks Dorian,” she said. She moved to sit next to Hope and asked,

“Has your escort come to talk to you yet?”

“They said only yours would be here, but my Dad just stepped out to get me some water. He and Stefan should both be here soon.”

“Cool,” Josie said. The two girls sat in silence for a moment until Josie asked, “So uh, was everything okay with you and your Dad?”

“It’s fine,” Hope said in a clipped tone. Josie guessed that was the end of that. Josie rubbed her hands on her dress in an attempt to have something to do. Sitting was starting to get tiring. Maybe she was just used to always being on her feet because of the arena. She started tapping her feet on the ground to busy herself, and was getting a nice tune going when Hope snapped,

“Will you stop it!”

“I’m bored!” Josie complained.

“Well too bad!” Hope said, “I can’t get one damn minute of quiet here.” Josie rolled her eyes and laid back against the couch.

“Ouch!” she grumbled.

“Now what?” Hope asked.

“My back still hurts from our three week fight to the death,” Josie said. She stood up and said, “I need some pain medicine.”

“And where are you going to get any?”

“I’ll find some,” she said. She opened the door to leave, only to be met with Stefan outside the door, holding a cup of whiskey.

“Legally, I’m not allowed to let you leave,” he said, “Sit back down. We’ve got a script to run over.” Josie sighed and plopped herself back down next to Hope.

“How was your adventure?” Hope asked.

“Fuck you,” Josie said.

“Language,” Stefan said as he leaned against the table across from them. Klaus came in a few moments later and asked,

“Are you having problems controlling the children, Mr. Salvatore?”

“We’re fine, Dad,” Hope said with an eye roll. This was when Josie noticed signs of animosity between the two Mikaelsons. She refused to make eye contact with her father, and Klaus didn’t look too happy to see Hope either. They must have argued between breakfast and now.

“What is the hold up with Ms. Pierce?” Klaus asked Stefan.

“No hold up,” Katherine said as she sauntered in, “You know me, I like to make an entrance.”

“Oh you know I do,” he said, kissing her hand. Josie could feel Hope shudder in disgust next to her, and she held in a laugh. Katherine had Klaus wrapped around her finger.

“Now, let’s get started,” Katherine told them, “I know we’ve talked about it before, but a refresher is always good before you go out in front of the cameras.” The four other people in the room remained silent, so she continued with, “What we really need to sell on that stage is that the two of you are in  _ love _ . What does love mean to the two of you?”

“Can you guys just tell us what we’re supposed to say?” Hope asked in lieu of answering the question. Katherine sighed and said,

“I can’t just give you girls a script. The people of Panem...they  _ saw _ feelings there. What you need to do up on that stage is show that. Speak it, feel it, let it all out.”

“But Josie and I aren’t in love,” Hope said.

“Then what brought about those moments in the arena?” Klaus asked, “You were head over heels for Jade Tulle not too long ago, were you not?”

“Stop it, Dad,” Hope said, “That’s not what’s important right now.”

“No but it is,” Stefan said, “You said during the games that you were in love with Jade. The audience is going to ask if those feelings are still there.”

“So nothing about my life can be private?” Hope asked.

“Not anymore,” Stefan said, “You’re a public figure, both of you are. What comes with that is an expectation to  _ always _ put on a show. The same show you put on in the arena.”  _ Had that been all it was? Just a show? _ Josie looked at Hope for any sign of reassurance that it hadn’t been, but instead all she got was the girl studying her feet.

“This was all a show to you, wasn’t it?”

“Excuse me?” Hope asked.

“You went in there to kill Roman,” Josie said, “Maybe you were worried you’d fail. You needed someone watching your back. I was alone and scared. You broke my guard down when you kissed me, then kept me around as backup. I mean that was the original plan, right? We’d get rid of the other tributes than duke it out? I bet you couldn’t wait for that! You would finally get to finish me off…”

“Josette!” Katherine snapped at her, but she turned her out. Her eyes were schooled on Hope, who was planning on making a comeback.

“You don’t know anything about what my plans were,” Hope said.

“Whatever, Hope,” Josie grumbled, “You know what? How about we just tell the interviewer that we did it to survive. To get sponsors or whatever.”

“Fine by me,” Hope grumbled.

“No, that is exactly what we’re  _ not _ going to do!” Katherine snapped at the two girls. Stefan nodded and said,

“The Capitol is mad enough. You tell them something like that, you two won’t be the only ones who suffer the consequences.” Even Klaus nodded in agreement. He came forward and said,

“I didn’t watch for reasons everyone should be aware of,” he said, and the girls awkwardly nodded, “But I saw the end. Whatever made you give that show, tell the audience that.”

“Well,” Josie murmured, “We were lonely and scared. Sometimes it’s just nice to have somebody with you, right?”

“And…” Klaus prodded. Hope continued Josie’s thought with,

“When I saw Josie alone, after she took mercy on me, I realized that I could be more than the killer I’d been set up as. Someone who could care for others.”

“There we go,” Klaus said, “Josette? Any more thoughts?”

“Being with Hope helped me understand what real love was,” she said, “It was everything Landon had ever told me. You care about someone so much, that what they want starts to matter more than what you want for yourself.” 

“And you would do anything for them,” Hope said. She turned to Josie, took her hand, and said, “No matter the cost.” 

“Excellent,” Klaus said, “Shall we give an interview?” Josie nodded, wondering if she should let go of Hope’s hand, but the other girl wasn’t letting go. She didn’t mind though. Hope’s hand in her own was making her calmer than she’d been all day.

It felt so crazy to Josie that she was standing backstage in the Capitol auditorium. It didn’t even feel real that she’d been standing back here with Landon only a few weeks ago. Now Landon was gone, as well as the other twenty one tributes who’d stood in that line. The thought of that made her skin crawl.

“Josie, are you okay?” Hope asked.

“Of course I’m okay, why do you think I’m not?”

“Because your leg is shaking and your hand is sweating?” Josie stopped her leg and said,

“If my hand is bothering you, then why are you still holding it?”

“Because you won’t let go.”

“I haven’t let go because you aren’t letting go.” 

“Fine, let’s just both let go,” Hope said. Josie nodded, but right when they meant to let go, their hands remained intertwined.

“You know, part of letting go is to actually...let go,” Josie said.

“Okay. You first,” Hope said, a shy tint in her eyes. Josie just gave her a small smile and kept a grip on her hand. Hope didn’t object.

“I wanted to apologize for earlier,” Josie said, “I didn’t mean to call you out like that in front of your Dad. And for letting them talk about Jade.”

“That wasn’t your fault,” Hope said, “Dad was always picky when it came to Jade. He can try to act accepting, but I know it bothers him.”

“I’m sorry,” Josie said. Hope shrugged,

“He isn’t mean about it or anything, but me marrying Roman has always been the easy path. He just doesn’t want me to make things too hard on myself.”

“And what do you want?” 

“I want _ ed _ Jade,” she said, “But now...now I don’t know.” Josie opened her mouth to answer, but was cut off when Katherine walked into the hallway.

“Ladies, they’re ready for you,” she told them. She held the door open and they went towards the stage, remaining hand in hand.

“Ladies and Gentlemen, may I present to you, the victors of the 74th Annual Hunger Games, Ms. Josette Saltzman and Ms. Hope Mikaelson!” Enzo announced. As the audience cheered, Hope asked,

“Why does your name get to go first?”

“Let’s just go!” Josie snapped, but she did smile a bit at the name order. She led Hope onto the stage, and while Hope waved at the audience, Josie just kept her eyes trained on the chair she was supposed to sit in. 

Enzo still had his same chair from the first interview, but the chair Josie had sat in was replaced with a couch for two. Fitting. She took her seat, and slowly let go of Hope’s hand as she sat down next to her. Enzo signalled to the audience to quiet down, then he turned his attention back to her and Hope.

“Ladies, it is such a pleasure to be able to speak with you again,” he told them.

“The pleasure is all ours, Enzo,” Hope said sweetly, but Josie could feel her tensing up. She very clearly didn’t want to be there.

“Now ladies, I know several people-including myself-have been wondering about what exactly went down in the arena.”

“Well Enzo,” Hope said, “It’s a kind of...complicated story. What Josie and I shared, it’s a type of feeling I can’t even begin to explain.” A huge rush of “awws” and “oohs” followed. These Capitol people just ate anything up, didn’t they?

“Josie,” Enzo said, and Josie realized she did not like when the Capitol people used her nickname. Josette really was fine, “How did you realize that you were in love?”

“I uh...it was, well…”  _ Dammit Josie, get it together! _ “I just, um….” As she continued to splutter, she felt Hope’s hand back in hers, giving her a gentle squeeze. She turned to the other girl, and watched as Hope gave her an encouraging nod.

“I actually realized it...through Landon,” she said. 

“Ah yes, poor Mr. Kirby, may he rest in peace,” Enzo said.  _ I hate you, _ Josie thought. “Now how was it that Mr. Kirby helped you with this realization?”

“Well, like everyone here probably remembers, Landon had feelings for me,” she said. That got her some sympathy from the crowd, “And he pretty much taught me all about it. I’ve never had feelings like that for somebody…”  _ A lie, but who needed to know _ , “So he made me realize that the person I was in love with had come to the games with me too.” She turned to Hope and gave her a small kiss on the cheek. The audience was basically drooling over them at this point.

“Would you look at this, everybody? Two young women hopelessly in love. Two star crossed lovers from different districts. Let’s give them a hand, everybody!” As the audience cheered, Hope gave Josie a subtle thumbs up. The interview kept going, and the two of them basically reiterated everything they’d talked about with Klaus in the prep room.

“And at the end of the day,” Josie said, “Our love for each other was more important than even our own lives.” Hope backed her up by saying,

“We would have rather died than lived without each other." That line got them more applause than Josie even thought was possible. Her ears felt like they were going to burst.

“I think we’ve heard everything this afternoon,” Enzo said, getting up from the chair. The two girls stood up with him, and after shaking his hand, he said,

“Alright, one more round of applause for our two wonderful victors!” The applause continued, and this time, both girls waved at the crowd. As Hope got closer, Josie murmured,

“Get me off of this stage!” 

“One step ahead of you,” Hope said. She gave one last wave to the audience before half tugging, half leading Josie off the stage.

“I thought that would never end,” Josie said once they were off.

“I feel that,” Hope said, “I need to get out of this suit. I’ll see you back at the apartment.”

“Hope!” Josie called after the girl before she left. She turned and asked,

“Yeah?”

“Thank you. For getting me through that.”

“No problem,” she said, “I gotta go-”

“And I know we’re not in love,” Josie said before she could leave, “But I don’t know, maybe...maybe we could be friends? I know we’re from different districts, but we’re going to have to see each other while we push this love story-”

“Don’t you get it, Josie?” Hope asked angrily, “I can’t be your friend, I don’t  _ want _ to be your friend!” Josie felt taken aback by Hope’s sudden outburst.

“But I don’t understand. On the stage-”

“On the stage I was acting. Because that’s what we were doing, right? Acting!” Josie felt like actual venom was being spat at her.

“I mean yeah, that was what we said-”

“Goddammit Josie! Just leave me alone!” Hope snapped. She turned on her heel and stormed off, but Josie wasn’t letting her go that easy. She ran after her and said,

“Hey, why are you so angry?”

“Just forget it!”

“I don’t want to forget it,” she said, “Something is making you upset. What’s going on? It is Jade, or your Dad? Or your leg?” Hope didn’t answer her, “Would you please just let me hel-” She was cut off when Hope kissed her. It was a long kiss, and it was hard. Josie kissed her back gently then pulled away, expecting to see a cameraman, or a Capitol member. But they were alone.

“Hope, what was that for?” Josie asked, “We aren’t being watched right now or anything.” Hope gave Josie probably the saddest look in existence before shaking her head and walking off.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the long wait, I hope this was worth it! Two more chapters, then the girls will be back home :)


	21. Chapter 21

The rest of the day was quiet. After the interview, Josie had gotten out of her dress and returned to the penthouse. She’d been sitting on the couch ever since she’d come back, and was close to falling asleep when the door opened and Klaus and Hope entered.

“What are you guys doing here?” Josie asked. She and Hope hadn’t said a word to each other the whole way back, and she didn’t plan on talking to her now.

“Now Josette, don’t be rude,” Katherine said as she entered the room, “Mr. and Ms. Mikaelson have come to talk about our plans for tomorrow.”

“What’s tomorrow?” Josie asked.

“When we take you home, of course,” Katherine said.  _ Home. _ The world felt almost foregin on Josie’s tongue. She’d been so wrapped up in Hope drama all day that she hadn’t even thought about the fact that she’d get to go home soon. And it would be nothing like before. She would be rolling in riches from her victory for the rest of her life. Even if her share had to be cut in half for Hope, it was still going to be more money than any working person in District 12 ever saw. 

Her family would get to move into Victor’s Village, where the houses were the biggest in all of Panem, second to only the Capitol. But Josie knew she wouldn’t enjoy any of it. Not with what it had cost her. But she would make it her mission to make sure Mom and Lizzie did. It was what they deserved.

“Oh right,” Josie said, “Home.” She leaned back against the couch and hugged a pillow close, thinking about her family. Mom and Lizzie would be excited to see her of course, but what about Rafael? She just knew he was going to hate her!

“Usually, the winning tribute will go to his or her district and there will be victory celebrations, but since the two of you are from different ones-” Katherine started, but was cut off when Hope said

" We can go to Josie’s.” Klaus gave her a sharp look and said,

“I think we should really consider-”

“I want to go to Josie’s,” Hope said, “I don’t need to consider anything.” She stomped off and ended up going to Josie’s room, slamming the door behind her.

“I’ll go and check on her,” Klaus said with a sigh. Once the two Mikaelsons were gone, Katherine took it as an opportunity to inform Josie of what was to come. Stefan helped himself to a drink.

“Once we arrive, you will be reunited with your family,” Katherine said, “We’ll have to speak to someone to have Ms. Mikaelson’s family meet us there as well.”

“I have to meet Hope’s family?” Josie asked.

“Yes, and she’ll meet yours,” Katherine said with a small clap. Josie held in a groan. She had no interest in meeting the whole Mikaelson clan, especially since they’d probably had to sit through footage of Josie making out with Hope in that lake. Dear God, she was going to get an earful about that from her  _ own _ family! Josie tried to picture Hope’s family in her head. 

She already knew Klaus, and she’d seen Hope’s mother, what was her name...Hayley! She’d seen Hayley on screen. And Hope had mentioned having an Aunt Freya. A  _ gay _ Aunt Freya. She wondered how Klaus felt about his sister or sister in law if he wasn’t accepting of Hope. Did he not accept her either?

“Josette!” Katherine said, snapping her from her thoughts.

“Sorry,” Josie said, “What were you saying?” Katherine shook her head and murmured something about disrespectful teenagers before saying,

“Then you will go in front of the district and be officially crowned the victors.”

“Go in front of everyone?” Josie asked. She was so sick of all the attention! Katherine nodded and said,

“Yes. You’ll be crowned and celebrated. Then we can start the work of moving you from your home into Victor's Village. You’ll just love the houses there.” 

“Oh yeah,” Stefan said, “That plumbing is exquisite.” Katherine looked ready to murder him for his unnecessary comments, but neither Stefan or Josie cared much. In fact, besides Hope, the only real thought on Josie’s mind was when she would get her pain medicine. Her back was killing her!

“Anyway,” Katherine said, “Once you’re moved in, you’ll get a few weeks to relax before you and Hope go on your victory tour. But, we can go into those details when the time comes.”

“What is the tour like?” Josie asked. Stefan gave her a grim look and said,

“You go backwards from 12 to 1, and give a speech in front of all of them, with the families of the tributes getting their own pedestals,” he said, then bluntly added, “It sucks.”

“Stefan!” Katherine said in annoyance.

“I’m just preparing her,” he said, “When you go to some districts...particularly the ones where you were the one to take their children directly...those ones will be hard.”

“Will they shout at us?” Josie asked.

“They’ll shout, curse, cry, but you can’t really blame them, right? They lost their children. They’ll need someone to blame.”

“Fine, when does that happen?” Josie asked, already not looking forward to it.

“In about three months. You’ll get some time to spend with your family, and in yours and Hope’s cases, pretend to be a loving couple.”

“Great,” Josie grumbled. She turned to Katherine and asked,

“What time do we leave tomorrow?”

“Bright and early, Josette. I have your outfit from the Reaping hung up in your closet if you want to take that home with you. And there is a variety of outfits for you to choose from to wear the morning.”

“Cool,” Josie said, not really caring for the outfits, “Anything else I need to know?”

“No, that’s all,” Katherine said, “Why don’t you go check in on Hope? I’ll check on dinner.”

“Fine, and can you ask for my pain medicine? Dorian said they would send it.”

“I’ll ask, Josette. Go along now,” Katherine said. Josie stood up from the couch, wincing as the pain shot through her side. She half walked, half limped to her room and knocked on the door.

“Hope?” she asked.

“One second, Ms. Saltzman,” came Klaus’s voice. Josie had nearly forgotten he was in there. She stood outside her room for a few more minutes, and was leaning against the door when it opened, shooting her forward onto the ground.

“Ow,” she grumbled.

“Deepest apologies,” Klaus said. He helped her up and said, “Hope is just in there. I’ll leave the two of you alone.” He went to the living room, and as she listened to him strike up conversation with Stefan and Katherine, Josie entered her room. Hope was sitting on the edge of the bed, using the remote to change the image on the wall.

“Which one is for your district?” Josie asked.

“This one,” Hope said, stopping on a huge wall of stone. It was just simple stone, but it was so intricate. It put any other walls to shame.

“What’s masonry like?” Josie asked, sitting next to her.

“Hard,” Hope said, “My uncle Finn works in a stone cutting shop, so he would teach me how to use the tools. It takes a lot of precision. I chose to be a Career instead.”

“Wait, this was your choice?” Josie asked.

“It’s everybody’s,” Hope said, “You can either work in a stone cutting, stone molding, or stone finishing shop, or you can train to go to the games. Let me tell you, these hands? Not made to cut, mold, or finish any dang stones!”

“I can’t believe you became a tribute so you wouldn’t have to work in a stone factory!”

“Have you  _ seen _ a stone factory?” Hope asked, “Roughing it with Roman was easier!” 

“You’re literally insane,” Josie said with a laugh. She sat next to Hope, who said,

“Yeah I get that a lot. Which one is yours?”

“The woods,” Josie said. She grabbed the remote and moved forward, going to the patch of forest she’d seen on her first night. A forest she was going to be able to see in person.

“That’s beautiful,” Hope said, “I didn’t know there were woods in District 12. From what we know, it’s just coal mines.”

“If it helps, all we know about you guys is that there’s nothing but stone walls.”

“That’s because there  _ is _ nothing but stone walls,” Hope said, “But I guess we’ll be able to see everything when we have to show off our love story.”

“I guess,” Hope said, her face falling, “I should probably be going back to my room.”

“Wait,” Josie said before Hope could get up, “Can we please talk about earlier?”

“There’s nothing to talk about.”

“I think there is,” Josie said, “You kissed me. There were no cameras, no audience, not even a random backstage worker. Why did you do that?”

“Why do you think I did?”  _ Dammit, why did she have to turn it back on Josie? _

“I have an idea,” she said, “But I’m not sure if it’s right or not.”

“What is it?”

“That...when we were in that arena, you maybe started to show some real feelings?” Hope grew silent, and resorted to playing with her hands, “Am I on the right track?”

“Maybe,” Hope grumbled.

“Hope, I uh, I’m sorry, but I just don’t-”

“Yeah, I got that,” Hope snapped, making Josie flinch. The two of them sat in silence, and after it got too awkward, Josie said,

“Look, I really think you should reconsider when I asked if we could be friends. I know that this isn’t the best situation, but we’re gonna need to be believable in front of the districts. If we barely know each other, it’s going to be hard.” Hope remained silent, “Please say something.”

“I don’t know if I can do that,” Hope said after a second.

“Can you at least try? For our sakes, and our family’s? I’m sorry that I can’t give you what you want, but we’ve shared an experience that no one else ever will. Two victors from one year. That’s always going to bring us together, don’t you think?”

“Yeah,” Hope said. She took a breath and said, “Fine, let’s try this friend thing. What do you want to know about me?”

“For starters, your family. I’ve heard of your parents, Aunt Freya, and Uncle Finn. Is that it?”

“Oh God no,” Hope said. She leaned back on the bed, and Josie helped pull her metal foot on with her. She laid down and listened intently to Hope’s description.

“So, my Mom is an only child, but my Dad has a  _ huge _ family. He’s the fourth sibling. Aunt Freya is the oldest, then there’s Uncles Finn and Elijah. Then my Dad. After Dad there’s Uncle Kol, Aunt Rebekah, and Uncle Henrik. Henrik is actually not much older than us. His last Reaping was about...six years ago. He was going to be a Career, but he found his skill in stone finishing.”

“Ah,” Josie said.

“Then Aunt Freya is married to Aunt Keelin,” Hope continued, “And they have a son named Mikael after my grandfather. He passed away a few years ago.”

“Oh, I’m sorry,” Josie said.

“It’s okay,” Hope said, “I honestly didn’t know him that well. And I only see my Grandma Esther about one or two times a year. It’s hard for her to travel sometimes.”

“That makes sense,” Josie said, “Is that your whole family?” 

“Oh, not yet,” Hope said, “There’s my adoptive brother Marcel, he’s a stonecutter, Uncle Kol is married to Aunt Davina, they’re both stone finishers. Uncle Finn, Aunt Rebekah, and Uncle Elijah  are all stonecutters, but Aunt Freya breaks from the group as the only stone molder. Even Aunt Keelin is a cutter. Cutters make the most coin. Second to Careers, of course.”

“So they all work with stones?” Hope nodded,

“Well, they do now. My Uncles were all Peacemakers back in the day. But when you get older, they’ll start to want younger people to police the streets, so it’s an early retirement. They’re well off, though. They work more because they want to, not because they need to.”

“Oh,” Josie said. She couldn’t imagine anyone from 12 living like that. She was worried Hope would ask, so she changed the subject “How old is little Mikael?”

“He just turned three,” Hope said, “He’s the cutest little boy in the world.”

“Can I ask, though?” Hope nodded, “Since Aunt Freya and Aunt Keelin are both women, then how did little Mikael…” 

“Oh, we have some family friends. Like Vincent, he’s the stone molder who helped them have Mikael. Oh and Camille, my trainer from the Academy. Both of them are basically family.” 

“That’s so cool!” Josie exclaimed.

“Yeah. You’ll probably be meeting all of them tomorrow,” Hope said.  _ Oh dear. _

“Great!” Josie said, trying to sound as enthusiastic as possible. That made her so nervous.

“So who will I be meeting tomorrow?” Hope asked, “Parents, aunts, uncles, siblings, friends?”

“ There’s my Mom, Caroline. Well, adoptive Mom. My biological Mom passed away in childbirth, and my Dad died in a mining accident when I was in first grade. Caroline’s taken care of me and my sister Elizabeth-well, Lizzie-ever since. There aren’t many jobs for women in the District, and my Mom lost her job as a nurse when I was twelve. That’s why I signed up for the tesserae, which got my name put into the pot several times. Then um, there’s Rafael. He’s been my best friend my whole life, but uh, he’s Landon’s brother. I doubt he’ll be coming to congratulate me on coming home without him.”

“I’m sorry, Josie,” Hope said, “If it helps, I doubt they’ll be excited to see me.”

“Yep, you’re probably right about that,” Josie said, which made Hope laugh. Hope had the most amazing laugh.  _ Goddammit! _ Why couldn’t she feel the same way Hope did? I mean, she thought she had at first! Ugh, at least pretending wouldn’t be too hard. There was a knock on the door not too long after, so Josie said, “Come in!” The door opened and Katherine came in.

“Josette, dinner is ready. Hope, you and your father are more than welcome to join.”

“That’s okay Ms. Pierce,” Hope said, “I’m going to need to help him write letters to our family to explain why they have to meet us in twelve. I’ll see you guys on the train.”

“Have a good night, sweetheart,” Katherine said as Josie helped Hope off the bed.

“You guys too. Goodnight Josie.” Hope limped out of the room, and soon Josie heard the sounds of the elevator. Katherine pulled a bottle out of her pocket and said,

“Here is your pain medicine. However, be warned that this is a very strong medicine. You should only take one at a time, once a day.”

“Thanks,” Josie said, “I’ll be out for dinner in a bit.” Katherine gave her a nod and left the room. Josie unscrewed the cap of pills and took one, washing it down with water from one of the bottles Stefan had left in there. It worked almost immediately. 

As Josie took a step, the pain wasn’t there. She felt great until after dinner, when the pain started to come back. For her own sake, she popped one more pill. One extra wouldn’t hurt her too much, right?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the long wait, i'll try to have the next chapter up soon :) I hope you guys liked this one!

**Author's Note:**

> This is something I've been working on for a while...I hope you guys enjoyed! Next chapter will be up soon :)


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